On 16^th December, 2023, after a year-long legal battle, Mumbai’s 90-year-old Dolly Katrak was finally able to regain possession of her flat – Rati House (third floor of Reliable Citadel, Fort), which was wrongly sealed by the APMC police in Vashi, without due diligence, after the licensee was booked in a criminal case. The case was fought by her niece, Behroze Cooper, in her seventies, who was granted power of attorney.

The flat was sealed by the police around September-October 2022, without Katrak’s knowledge. But it was only when September’s rent was not received that they learnt of the alleged fraud by the licensee. The police didn’t check the records as they should have, as the maintenance bills are in the owner – Katrak’s name.

Cooper’s repeated pleas to the APMC police, informing them of the sealed premises belonging to her aunt and to be handed over to her, received no response. She even visited the APMC police station one last time before filing the case, but was told, ‘Parsi logon ke paas bahut paisa hai (Parsis have a lot of money)’, hinting the obvious.

Cooper moved the Belapur magistrate court on 8^th March, 2023, but despite getting the order on 4^th April, 2023 in their favour, the APMC police wouldn’t hand over possession of the flat for six months. Then on 15^th December, 2023, Cooper filed a contempt petition and she finally was handed over the possession of her aunt’s premises.

This case emphasizes the crucial importance of doing a thorough background check when renting out property as also the need for accountability for police actions.