Threats to Justice Patel: Bombay High Court keeps reports in sealed cover, cites 26/11 coverage

3 min readMumbaiJul 2, 2026 03:52 PM IST

The Bombay High Court was hearing a PIL seeking a high court-monitored SIT investigation into the threats and attack against Justice Patel and his family. (File Photo)

The Bombay High Court on Thursday asked the central and Maharashtra governments to ensure investigation reports into threats and the attack against retired Justice Gautam Patel and his family are “not made a matter of discussion and publicity”.

The threats are allegedly linked to a verdict Justice Patel delivered two days before his retirement in April 2024 in a dispute over the religious leadership of the Dawoodi Bohra community. The court directed its registry to preserve the reports in its records in a sealed envelope.

On June 15, a bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra V Ghuge and Justice Gautam A Ankhad asked Deven Bharati, Commissioner of Police, Mumbai, to monitor the investigation and submit a status report on the threats. The court was informed that Justice Patel had filed a complaint about the threats at the Gamdevi police station in South Mumbai.

On Thursday, while the Centre submitted a report on steps taken to extend protection to the former judge and his family members in the United Kingdom, the Mumbai police produced a report from its additional commissioner indicating steps taken to protect the retired judge and his family members in India along with the investigation into the alleged incidents.

“In order to ensure that the steps being taken by the Union Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Indian High Commission in London and Mumbai Police are not a matter of discussion or publicity, we are placing both these reports in a sealed envelope to be preserved as records of the proceedings,” the court noted in its order.

Petitioners for SIT probe into threats

The bench was hearing a PIL filed by the Bombay Bar Association, the Advocates Association of Western India, and the Bombay Incorporated Law Society. They sought a thorough high court-monitored investigation into the threats and attack against Justice Patel and his family, to be conducted by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by a retired Supreme Court or high court judge.

ACJ Ghuge reminded the governments about the live coverage of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks of 2008. “The visuals from Trident Hotel and Cama Hospital were getting telecast, and they (attackers) got to know how the investigation was being done. The reports (on alleged threats against retired judge and family) are only to convince us that something proper is done. We do not want everyone to know how it is being done and the issue is being tackled,” the judge orally remarked.

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After the petitioners’ lawyers submitted that the matter be posted after four weeks since the Centre and the Mumbai police are making progress in their investigation and “will be in a position to submit a further status report on the adjourned date”, the high court posted the further hearing to August 7.