Mumbai: Caretaker Accused of Fabricating Will to Grab Share in High-Value Property
A high-value South Mumbai property has become the centre of an alleged forgery and extortion plot, with a caretaker accused of attempting to grab a share in the estate by fabricating a will and demanding Rs 3.5 crore, police said.According to a complaint lodged at DB Marg police station, the accused, identified as Kishabai Kadam, allegedly tried to claim 25 per cent rights of a prime property — Mistry Hospital — located at Kennedy Bridge near Opera House, a locality known for its high real estate value, by producing a purported will in her favour.The complainant Tanvi Mistry, a 37-year-old doctor, told police that the property — a long-standing family asset — was originally acquired by her great grandfather in the 1950s and is part of an ongoing civil dispute among legal heirs.Police said the caretaker had been hired to look after her father’s aunt, Sushila Mistry, who was suffering from dementia and required round-the-clock assistance. The caretaker lived on the ground floor of the property along with her children during this period, sources said.Following the elderly aunt’s death in February this year, the family asked Kadam to vacate the premises. However, she allegedly refused, claiming that the deceased had executed a will granting her rights in the property. Suspicion deepened when she failed to produce the original document despite repeated requests. Subsequently, a photocopy of the alleged will surfaced through a third party. When confronted, one of the purported witnesses reportedly denied having signed the document, raising serious doubts about its authenticity.During a meeting in April, the caretaker demanded Rs 3.5 crore in exchange for relinquishing her claimed 25 per cent share in the property, the complainant told police. The conversation was allegedly recorded by the complainant’s husband and has been submitted as part of the evidence. Legal scrutiny of the document by family-appointed lawyers indicated discrepancies in signatures and notarisation details. The will is said to have been notarised in 2024, but family members claimed they were never informed of any such development, despite being closely involved in the elderly woman’s care and affairs. “The signature mismatch, the denial by the witness, and the circumstances under which the document surfaced point towards a possible fabrication,” a source familiar with the complaint said.The FIR alleges that the caretaker, along with her associates — including a notary and another individual — conspired to create forged documents to unlawfully claim the share in the property. She is also accused of continuing to occupy a portion of the premises despite termination of her employment, amounting to alleged trespass. Police said the matter is under investigation and forensic examination of the documents is likely to be conducted.“We are verifying the authenticity of the will and the role of all persons named in the complaint,” an officer said. No arrests have been made in the case so far.
