Should I invite them to my cremation?: E Bombay High Court judge on death threats
Retired Justice Gautam Patel has received a series of threats in the last few months over a 2024 verdict in a case related to the
Retired Justice Gautam Patel has received a series of threats in the last few months over a 2024 verdict in a case related to the Dawoodi Bohra succession row. Apart from threats, his daughter too faced a physical assault in April this year in London. In April 2024, Justice Patel had upheld the position of Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin as the 53rd Dai al-Mutlaq (leader) of the Dawoodi Bohra community, while noting that he had a valid appointment. Read Full Story The Bombay Bar Association has issued a resolution condemning repeated threats and called for strict action against the perpetrators. However, speaking to India Today TV's Vidya, Justice Patel says that in spite of the attack and threats, "every authority has been passing it off to the other." Edited Excerpts Q – When was the threat received for the first time? Justice Patel – The threat was first received in Mumbai in September by my wife. We complained to the police and I filed an NC complaint. I received protection and spoke to the Commissioner of Police at that time. Nothing happened until April 22, when there was a physical attack on my daughter just outside her home, across the street from her front door, after she had finished the school run with one of the children. A masked man in a hoodie punched her repeatedly in the face. She suffered a fractured nose and fell to the ground. And on Friday, June 5, we received a letter which said that we had not complied with the demands and now had to face the consequences.
It said the next step would be cremation for me and my family. It is unbelievable. It really is. Q – What did the threats state? Justice Patel – The September threat said two or three things. One, that they are a powerful guild within the Dawoodi Bohra community. Two, that they are not concerned with the appeal filed by the plaintiff, the losing party in the succession case. But they want me to go to what is effectively the “High Court of YouTube” and make a video recanting my judgment. It is absurd. There is no concept of recanting a judgment, let alone on YouTube. An appeal has been filed; it is pending and will be decided by the appellate court. Q – What more was stated in the threat letter? Justice Patel – It said that if I do not recant, great harm will befall me and my family since they have engaged a dangerous criminal syndicate. The latest threat says the syndicate has been fully paid, and the contract can only be cancelled if I comply by making this so-called YouTube video. In Bombay, this is a supari contract — what else is it? It is clearly someone with resources. Someone claiming to belong to the Dawoodi Bohra community and a powerful guild within it. I do not care which side of the litigation they are on; I am the victim here. It has been carefully engineered because no harm had taken place in India beyond the threatening letter in September.
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