Accused Nida Khan Moves Court for Bail Citing Pregnancy as Police Teams Launch Mumbai Manhunt

Of the eight accused, five — Danish Sheikh, Nida Khan, Shafi Shaikh, Shahrukh Qureshi and Asif Ansari — were associates at the TCS Nashik branch, while Raza Memon and Tausif Attar have been named as team leaders by the complainants. Ashwini Chainani, the only senior employee named, was the operations manager based in Pune and has been booked on charges of abetment. It is alleged that Chainani failed to act despite receiving complaints regarding the accused, which further emboldened them.

Speaking to The Indian Express, advocate Rahul Kasliwal, representing Khan, said, “One of the grounds is that she is pregnant. Another is that there is a delay of two to three years in filing the FIR. If the alleged incidents were ongoing, why was no complaint filed earlier? Why did they remain silent for three years?”

Appealing for sensitivity, he said, “Nida Khan is carrying her first pregnancy and is going through a traumatic situation. Regardless of caste or religion, any woman deserves empathy.”

Kasliwal also questioned the legal basis of certain allegations. “Is there any specific law in Maharashtra that criminalises forced religious conversion in this context? If there is no such Act applicable, how can that be treated as an offence?” He reiterated that the offences invoked against Khan are punishable with less than seven years of imprisonment. “She herself is a woman; how can she be involved in outraging the modesty of another woman? These allegations do not stand to reason,” he added, maintaining that Khan had merely expressed her views and had not coerced anyone.

Referring to the complainant, Kasliwal said the case stemmed from interpersonal disputes. “The complainant and the victim are known to each other and were college friends. There are personal equations involved,” he said. He also alleged that the case had drawn communal overtones. “Today, across the country, Hindu-Muslim narratives are playing out. We are being trolled for taking up this case, but that does not affect our legal position,” he said.

Meanwhile on Saturday, the Nashik sessions court has granted two days of police custody till April 20 to co-accused Raza Memon and Shafi Shaikh. Police told the court that custodial interrogation was necessary to examine their mobile phones and uncover possible links to other accused and offences.

On the remand plea, Kasliwal said the prosecution had sought custody primarily to access digital evidence. “They were asking for the password of the mobile phone. We argued that if the accused does not provide it, can the investigating agency not retrieve data through its own cyber experts?” He stressed that under law, an accused has the right to remain silent. “There is no obligation on the accused to answer incriminating questions during investigation. Custody cannot be sought merely for extracting passwords,” he added. Kasliwal said his team is representing five to six accused and that formal submissions on anticipatory bail are expected on Monday.

On Friday, Nashik Police sent three teams to Mumbai to trace Khan. Her husband was detained and questioned within Mumbra police station limits. He told police she had gone to stay with relatives, but when teams reached the address it was found locked and the mobile phones of Khan and her family members were switched off.

Meanwhile, TCS on Friday announced it had engaged Deloitte and law firm Trilegal as independent counsel for its internal investigation. CEO and MD K Krithivasan said an oversight committee chaired by independent director Keki Mistry has been constituted to review findings. The probe is being led by Aarthi Subramanian, president and COO. TCS also clarified that Khan “was a process associate and held no leadership role” and that its Nashik unit remains operational.