A significant development has emerged for the Trustees of Mumbai’s historic Jama Masjid, as the Mumbai Sessions Court has issued a favorable ruling for 11 Trustees, including Shoib Khatib. The court quashed a First Information Report (FIR) that had been filed at the JJ Marg Police Station. This decision was rendered by the Mazgaon Metropolitan Court under Section 156 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
Expressing gratitude, Shoib Khatib stated, “We are deeply thankful to the Honorable Judge for considering our plea and delivering such a commendable order based on the facts presented. Throughout the proceedings, we laid out all relevant information before the court, and it is on this legal merit that we emerged victorious in this case.” Khatib further emphasized that the allegations against them were unfounded, asserting that they were an attempt to tarnish the reputation of Jama Masjid, but the court ultimately upheld justice.
Brief History of the Case:
On May 11, 2022, the Complainant Mr. Nakhuda Mohammed Ali Rogay lodged a formal complaint with the J.J. Marg Police Station against Mr. Suhaib Bashir Khatib and ten other trustees of Jama Masjid in Mumbai. The police, however, did not initiate a preliminary inquiry, without compliance prompting Mr. Rogay to file a complaint directly in the Metropolitan Magistrate’s 69th Court, Mazgaon, U/S. 156 (3) Of CR. P.C. under C.C. No. 6900059/SW/2022 on June 4, 2024.
The complaint named Mr. Khatib and the following trustees:
- The late Mr. Mubeen Anwar Rizwani
- Mr. Parvez Ismail Sarkare
- Mr. Jazeel Mateen Navrange
- Mr. Suhail Mohammed Ibrahim Karu
- Mr. Nazir Ahmed Abdur Rehman Tungekar
- Mr. Jasnak Tanveer Nizammudin
- Mr. Mohammed Jummal Ismail Farooq
- Mr. Mohammed Naveed Mackba
- Mr. Zahid Shamshuddin Pakhmore and
- Mr. Mohammed Kadir Parkar.
The allegations included various offenses under Sections 406, 409, 420, 463, 465, 467, 468, 469, and 471, read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. Following this, the Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court issued an order on June 4, 2024, directing the J.J. Marg Police Station to register a First Information Report (FIR) against the accused parties.
In response, Advocate Firoz Usman, representing Mr. Khatib and the other trustees, filed a revision application under Section 397 of the Criminal Procedure Code, challenging the legality of the Magistrate’s order and seeking its quashing.
On July 25, 2024, the Honorable Additional Sessions Judge Shri S.P. Pingle, presiding in Court No. 88, granted the revision application, thereby quashing the earlier order issued by the Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court in Mazgaon.
