Court to hear Chintan property plea on February 8

The Borivali metropolitan magistrate court is set to hear the plea of artist Chintan Upadhyay, an accused in the Kandivali double murder case, on February 8. Earlier, on January 25, Chintan had filed a plea to seal the flat at Juhu that he shared with his wife Hema and her studio an Andheri. His friends were concerned that since these places are accessible to Hema’s family and friends, someone would plant false evidence to implicate Chintan in her murder.

On January 30, an intervention was also filed by Hema’s brother Manish Hirani but it was rejected by the court on Tuesday. In the plea, Mr Hirani had claimed that he is the nominee in all the bank accounts and properties owned by Hema Upadhyay. He had also mentioned that Hema was aware of the threat to her life and had therefore willed her property to Manish. Hema’s will stating that all this was stored in her locker. However, the court rejected Mr Hirani’s plea on the grounds that the plea to seal the property was a matter between Chintan and the police and Mr Hirani could not intervene in it.

On February 8, the magistrate will be hearing the arguments made by Chintan’s lawyer on their plea to seal the property.

On the other hand, Hema’s family is upset over the plea filed by Chintan. According to them, the couple’s Juhu flat was jointly owned Chintan and Hema but the studio at Andheri was solely Hema’s property that she had for `53.50 lakh between December 2007 to January 2008.

All the accused in Hema and her lawyer Haresh Bhambani’s murder case will be produced in court on February 8 according to the routine judicial custody process.