Police told to probe theft allegation against Sheetal Mafatlal

The Magistrate at Girgaum Court asked Gamdevi police to probe the allegations and file a report. According to Marukhsa, her father too had objected to her step mother Sheetal taking away family assets from their Altamount Road residence without informing him or others in the family.

Maruksha alleged that she saw Sheetal wrapping family paintings and when she objected, the latter assured her that none of those would be removed. Later, 40 paintings by M F Hussain and other renowned artists were taken away by Sheetal, she alleged in a complaint filed in Girgaum court on July 12.

Marushka filed another complaint in the same court on July 31 when she found silver articles were also missing from the bungalow. She urged the court to direct police to probe the alleged theft as police did not act on her complaint. Maruksha, daughter of Atulya from his first wife Payal, has accused Sheetal of "causing immense loss to the family by removing priceless family heirlooms from the house without permission from other family members".

She has cited 12 witnesses to the alleged theft including her 86-year-old grandmother Madhuri. Earlier, Atulya and Sheetal were locked in legal dispute with their family over property. Currently, Atulya is not well and undergoing treatment abroad.

Meanwhile, Sheetal has filed a counter police complaint asking them to file FIR against her husband, mother-in-law and sister-in-law for harassing and threatening her. She claimed that the paintings were owned by her and that she kept them in safe custody whenever she travelled abroad.