Bombay HC stays Rs 20 crore fraud case against Virar's Dr Nitin Thorve, who alleges police sought Rs 15 crore

The Bombay High Court has stayed proceedings in an alleged Rs 20 crore fraud case against Dr Nitin Thorve, a well-known Virar businessman and director of Nidan Healthcare. Thorve has since made serious allegations against the police. At a press conference, he said Rs 15 crore was demanded from him, in the name of senior police officers, to get him out of the case and have it settled.

Thorve also claims a demand of Rs 20 crore was made in the same matter. The two sums are stated separately, which raises the question of what the alleged demand actually was. Police Commissioner Niket Kaushik has reportedly directed the Crime Branch to investigate the allegations.

The dispute goes back to a 2001 land deal. According to Thorve, he struck a deal in 2001 with the Mestri family of Dahisar over a property in Virar. He claims he paid the family Rs 66 lakh and has proof of the transaction. He says the old deal became a dispute years later and reached a police station.

In July 2026, the Mestri family filed a case against Thorve alleging fraud of Rs 20 crore. Thorve says he was shocked by a case suddenly being registered over such an old deal. He asked how a fraud case could be made out against him when the money had been paid.

The complaint puts the amount of the alleged fraud at Rs 20 crore. Because of the size of the sum, the case was reportedly handed to the Anti-Extortion Cell. Thorve then took the legal route and approached the Bombay High Court. He claims he produced evidence in court of paying Rs 66 lakh and also questioned the validity of the case.

Following his petition, the High Court has stayed proceedings in the case, which is being described as relief for Thorve. However, exactly which proceedings were stayed, on what conditions, and what the court observed will become clear only from the official order. The stay does not mean the case has ended for good or that all the complainants' allegations have been proved false.

On the allegation against the police, Thorve said at the press conference that he was repeatedly approached to get out of the case and to settle it. He named some officers, including Assistant Police Inspector Rupesh Dalvi of Boliinj police station and Police Sub-Inspector Shivaji Khade of the Anti-Extortion Cell. He claims Rs 15 crore was demanded in the name of senior officers, and he also alleged that Rs 20 crore was demanded to settle the matter.

The allegations are serious but have not been proved. Official details of when and how the demands were made, and who played what role, are yet to emerge. Whether there is evidence in the form of phone conversations, messages or money transfers is yet to be examined.

At the press conference, Thorve also cited the extortion case linked to Sachin Waze, a former Mumbai police officer. He alleged that big businessmen are implicated in cases and money is extorted from them, and on that basis questioned the functioning of the police.

Following Thorve's allegations, Commissioner Kaushik has reportedly handed the inquiry to an Assistant Commissioner of Police in the Crime Branch. The inquiry will examine why the officers contacted Thorve, what their connection was to the original investigation, whether there is any evidence of the alleged demand, and whether senior officers' names were used.

Assistant Police Inspector Rupesh Dalvi has responded to the allegations. He said: "This case was handed to the Anti-Extortion Cell. I have no connection with the investigation." Dalvi also said Thorve is making the allegations out of anger over the case registered against him. Thorve's allegations and the officer's response thus contradict each other.

Two separate questions now stand out. The first is the truth about the Rs 20 crore alleged fraud case registered in 2026 over a 2001 land deal. The second is whether the police demanded money for a settlement. The first will be answered by the land deal documents, evidence of the transactions and court proceedings, while the second is expected to be answered by the inquiry ordered by the Police Commissioner.