Police custody of the accused has been extended till December 21. (Representational)
A city court on Wednesday extended till December 21 police custody of the man arrested on charges of defrauding the mother of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sharad Bobde to the tune of over Rs 2.50 crore.
Tapas Nandlal Ghosh (49), arrested last week, was produced before the sessions court by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the city police for custody extension.
Ghosh, his wife and some others are accused of cheating Mukta Bobde (94), the CJI's mother, over a period of time.
However, besides Ghosh, who looked after a prime property owned by Mukta Bobde, no one else has been arrested in the case so far.
A police official said searches were conducted at the house of Ghosh, a city resident, after he was arrested on December 8.
The police have seized mobile phone and laptop of Ghosh and are also checking his bank accounts, he said.
As Ghosh's present police custody ended on Wednesday, the SIT produced him in the court.
After hearing arguments of prosecution and defence lawyers, the court extended his police custody till December 21.
The case relates to the management of Seasons Lawn, a property owned by the Bobde family. It is located adjacent to their ancestral bungalow in the Civil Lines area.
In 2007, Mukta Bobde had appointed Ghosh, a resident of Friends Colony, as the manager of the property, which is rented out for marriages and other functions, the police have said.
He was getting a monthly salary of Rs 9,000 and Rs 2,500 for every booking, they said.
After lockdown was imposed in March-end following the outbreak of coronavirus, persons who had booked the premises for different functions and wedding receptions, started demanding their money back, the police said.
Ghosh was allegedly reluctant to show the receipt book to the Bobdes and reveal transactions made by him with customers, they said.
The Rs 2.50 crore fraud came to light when the receipts and details of bank transactions from August 2017 to August 2020 were checked, the police said.
In August, when Mukta Bobde was unwell, one Kiran Vishnupant Deopujari (72) filed a complaint on her behalf against Ghosh and his wife who, used to take bookings in his absence, and some other persons.
On the basis of the complaint, the police had registered a case against the accused under IPC sections related to cheating, criminal breach of trust, forgery and common intention, among other.