Bombay HC dissatisfied with EOW's probe in Osho will dispute

Mumbai: The Bombay high court on Thursday expressed its dissatisfaction over the probe conducted so far by the Pune police’s economic offences wing (EOW) as it failed to ascertain the veracity of spiritual guru Osho Rajneesh’s will and also could not retrieve the original will from Spain.

The high court is also hearing the matter related to the alleged misappropriation of funds of Osho’s trust.

The division bench of Justice R.M. Savant and Justice Revati Mohite-Dere reprimanded the EOW while hearing a petition filed by one of Osho’s disciples, Yogesh Thak-kar, alleging that the will, which surfaced 23 years after Osho’s death, was a fake one.

The bench observed that the EOW had failed to take any concrete steps since the last hearing i.e. in April this year. The probe agency neither procured the original will nor could it ascertain whether the signatures of Osho on such a will and its copies were genuine.

The court has now directed the EOW to send the copy of the said will to a reputed forensic science laboratory or handwriting expert to ascertain whether the signature on the will was Osho’s or it had been forged as alleged by the petitioner.

During the hearing, Mr Thakkar’s lawyer, senior counsel Mahesh Jethm-alani, informed the court that he had sent a copy of the said will to a government-approved forensic lab in Delhi. He also said that the lab in its report has said that the said signature was forged.

Now, the court has asked the EOW to take into consideration the Delhi lab’s report and file a newly updated progress report before the court in two weeks.