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HC asks state to see if Pradeep Gharat will return as SPP in Dr Payal Tadvi case
MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Monday directed the Maharashtra government to approach senior advocate Pradeep Gharat to check if he would consider returning as special public prosecutor (SPP) in the 2019 Dr Payal Tadvi suicide abetment case, after his sudden removal earlier this year triggered objections from the victim's family. Mumbai, India - July 21, 2022: Lawyer Pradeep Gharat poses for the photos at his residence, in Mumbai, India, on Thursday, July 21, 2022. (Photo by Bhushan Koyande/HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)
On March 7, 2025, the state government removed Pradeep Gharat from the case. In his place, the state had appointed advocate Mahesh Manohar Mule as special public prosecutor. Dr Payal Tadvi's husband, Dr Salman Tadvi and her mother Abeda Salim Tadvi opposed the new appointment.
A division bench of justices Ravindra Ghuge and Gautam Ankhad was hearing a petition filed by Dr Tadvi's mother, Abeda Tadvi, challenging the state's decision to replace Gharat with advocate Mule. The petition alleged that the change was made without explanation, in violation of procedure, and without consulting the family.
'Such a senior advocate who has brought you so many convictions. The petitioner's faith in you has been shaken,' the bench remarked, questioning the state on the reasons for Gharat's removal. The judges also asked if any senior officer had personally taken the police into confidence to ensure cooperation in the sensitive case, noting that such matters needed to be handled 'judiciously.'
In July, the court had asked the government to justify the decision. The state later filed an affidavit, but the bench said its contents 'did not inspire confidence.' Although the judges initially felt Gharat might be unwilling to return, they directed the state to check if he would reconsider. The matter will be heard again on August 12.
Dr Payal Tadvi, 26, was a postgraduate medical student from the oppressed Tadvi-Bhil scheduled tribal community in Jalgaon district. She was enrolled in the obstetrics and gynaecology department at Topiwala National Medical College and BYL Nair Hospital. On May 22, 2019, she died by suicide, after months of caste-based harassment from three senior resident doctors – Dr Hema Ahuja, Dr Bhakti Mehare and Dr Ankita Khandelwal. The three accused were arrested under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and the Maharashtra Prohibition of Ragging Act, and are currently out on bail. Despite the passage of more than six years, the trial has yet to commence.
In November 2024, while serving as SPP, Gharat sought to add Dr Yi Ching Ling Chung Chiang — then head of the department — as a co-accused for allegedly ignoring repeated complaints by Dr Tadvi and her family. The move was based on findings of the college's anti-ragging committee and an early complaint from the family. On February 28, 2025, a special court allowed the application.
Just a week later, the state abruptly removed Gharat from the case — a decision that was not explained in the official notification nor conveyed to the Tadvi family, prompting Abeda Tadvi's legal challenge.
