The Maharashtra government was asked earlier this month by the Bombay High Court (HC) to provide the number of cases that had been pending at the Mumbai and Thane Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) divisions over the past five years. Among other cases, the court issued a directive in a plea that expressed concern about the delay in getting FSL findings in cybercrime investigations.
On December 16, a bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Advait M. Sethna issued an order in response to a plea from EduEdge Pro Pvt Ltd, represented by its Director Dr. Amarjeet Singh, who argued through advocate Himanshu Kode that a FIR filed with the Bandra Police Station should be transferred to an independent investigating agency, like the Mumbai police's Crime Branch or the Cyber Cell.
An international EdTech institute called EduEdge Pro has revealed that a former senior executive had deceived her former employer by allegedly stealing confidential company information and used it to start a rival skill-development company.
In September 2024, the bench highlighted the critical role that FSL reports play in criminal cases and instructed the home department of the state to approve the funding for the creation of a "Centre of Excellence in Digital Forensic" within a month.
A letter dated December 13, from the Director of the Directorate of Forensic Science Laboratories, which was presented on December 16 by Additional Public Prosecutor V B Konde-Deshmukh, claimed that actions had been taken to eliminate the current pendency in the Cyber division.
According to the statement, two projects were started in order to eliminate the Cyber Division's pendency. The letter further stated that a work order had been issued to carry out the "semi-automatic" project on which administrative approval had been obtained from the Home Department for the acquisition of tools, materials, and equipment. It was stated that the infrastructural work for the project in question was proceeding quickly and would be finished in four weeks.
Additionally, the letter reported that administrative approval had been obtained for the purchase of personnel and equipment needed to establish a "Centre of Excellence in Digital Forensic," that a work order had been issued on October 4th for the same purpose, that hardware and software had been received, and that the project would soon be put into action. The payment of the "mobilisation advance" for both projects was also approved by the state home department.
The court was notified that the hiring procedure for the 125 class-3 positions at FSL had begun and that Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) had been hired. The letter also stated that the authority will take the cases for analysis out of turn on a high-priority basis and will abide by the court orders whenever any court issues orders requesting Chemical Analyser (CA) reports.
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