Updated on Feb 19, at 3 p.m.

Cadila Pharma MD’s misconduct case has come to a stalemate, as the special investigation team (SIT) is unable to find concrete evidence against Rajiv Modi.

Meanwhile, the Bulgarian woman has ignored eight summons sent to her till now by the police. The whereabouts of the complainant woman are also a question, with multiple speculations over her being in India or her home country.

Updated on Feb 15, at 12.30 p.m.

Rajiv Modi of Cadila Pharmaceuticals, who seemed to evade police custody for a while now, appeared at Sola police station at around 8 a.m. to file a statement today. 

The Bulgarian girl who lodged a complaint was also called by the police for a statement. However, she did appear for a statement. The police are still unaware of her whereabouts. 

Chirag Koradia, JCP (Sector I) of city police, who is heading the SIT formed for the probe, filed the statement of Modi, which continued for five hours. 

In the interrogation, Modi was asked around 100 questions.

Modi, who appeared before the police after two summonses, told the police that he was in Europe and the US for business purposes.

According to the sources, Modi rejected all the charges against the Bulgarian woman in his statement. He also said that he never met the woman in person and was always in the presence of the staff.

As the police did not have proof against Modi, he was allowed to go, and further investigation will be underway.

Earlier, the Ahmedabad CP claimed that the Bulgarian girl had returned to her homeland.

Updated on Feb 8, at 11.24 a.m.

The Bulgarian woman, reported missing by her lawyer for the last 13 days, has been located, said GS Malik, Ahmedabad police commissioner. Malik said in a press conference that the complainant has returned to her hometown, Bulgaria.

Unaware of the woman’s location, her lawyer complained to the joint commissioner of police, mentioning that the girl had not been contacted since Jan 24 and also expressing concern about her safety.

He also said that the woman was last contacted near Shree Balaji Agora Mall, near Tapovan Circle on SP Ring Road.

The Bulgarian woman went missing a few days after her lawyer, and she had prepared to file a statement with the investigating officer on Jan 18, but the statement was not recorded as the officer was consumed with other work and it was rescheduled.

Updated on Jan 18, at 4.00 p.m.

The Bulgarian woman who accused Rajiv Modi of rape, extortion, and threats, will be inquired about the treatment she received from the police while filing her complaint. She will also be questioned about the officers and others who intimidated her while registering the case.

Earlier, the Sola police took the statements of 40 people and sent a notice to Rajiv Modi. In the notice, the police had asked Rajiv Modi to cooperate in the investigation and to appear before the police for a statement.

Cadila Pharma MD Rajiv Modi was directed to be booked by the Gujarat High Court on Dec 31, 2023, under sections 376, 354, 504, and 506 of the IPC, which include charges of rape, extortion and threats.

The evidence and facts from the report were taken into consideration, which stated Rajiv Modi as the prime accused. It also mentioned human resource manager Johnson Mathew’s involvement, accusing him of taking no action despite being aware of the entire incident.

Sola police has initiated a probe against the accused duo after registering the Bulgarian woman’s complaint.

Updated on Dec 16, 2023, at 2.29 p.m. 

In the previous hearing of the Bulgarian woman’s case against Cadila Pharma MD Rajiv Modi, the HC had directed the petitioner to submit the chronology of the whole case. It was heard on Dec 15.

The woman’s lawyer argued that the complaint, filed before the job dispute, was sidelined by the police with the intention of garnering a settlement between the two sides and then vanished.

The state government’s additional advocate general, Mitesh Amin, disregarded these allegations and presented an email copy of the complaint, which was absent from the woman’s chronology of events.

The High Court’s justice, Hasmukh D Suthar, also reprimanded the woman’s lawyer over their one-dimensional allegations against the police department and, especially, the superintendent of police (SP), Himala Joshi.

The woman’s lawyer argued that the truth could be revealed if the CCTV footage from Apr 10 to 20 are examined.

And about the complaint, they argued that it was submitted through email to the commissioner and everywhere else. However, a written copy was also submitted at the Mahila police station, but they failed to receive its copy.

Thus, the police picked up the job dispute case and sidelined this complaint.

The court has instructed the state to present the dispute complaint and related CCTV footage if they are available. And adjourned the hearing to next week.

Updated on Dec 9, 2023, at 1.25 p.m.

The hearing of the writ petition filed by a  Bulgarian woman against Cadila Pharma MD Rajiv Modi in the Gujarat HC conducted on Dec 8.

During this, representing the state government, public prosecutor Mitesh Amin’s arguments revealed that the petitioner had made a prior settlement with the defendant.

The government also added that police had followed the protocol by recording her statement seven to eight times, which makes the allegations against them baseless. She had earlier complained that the cops didn’t register her complaint despite repeated attempts.

The prosecutor argued that the petitioner had complained to the police commissioner on Apr 9 following the job and monetary disputes with the defendant. Following which, a demand draft of ₹24 lakh was issued to her as a settlement amount by the defendant.

The prosecutor’s argument makes a noteworthy revelation that the woman did not make any allegations of sexual harassment in the complaint.

He added that an affidavit was also issued to the police mentioning a settlement between the two parties, which was signed by her.

The prosecutor argued that the allegations levied subsequently were suspicious.

Amin also questioned the validity of the petition, as the lower court had already dismissed her petition to file a complaint in this case, following which she had to file a revision petition, which she allegedly has not.

The HC has directed the petitioner to submit the chronology of the whole case and has adjourned the hearing to Dec 15.

Updated on Nov 22, 2023, at 9 a.m.

A Bulgarian woman has filed a writ petition in the Gujarat high court against Rajiv Modi, chairman and managing director of Cadila Pharmaceuticals, a well-known pharma company in Ahmedabad.

The petition consists of allegations including sexual harassment. Justice JC Doshi of the high court summoned the records and proceedings of the case from the lower court and scheduled further hearing on the plea from Dec 4.

The writ petition filed by the woman consisted of an application asking the police to book Modi under sections 376, 354, 323, 504, and 506 (sexual harassment, assault on woman's modesty, intentional insult, and criminal intimidation).

Allegations against Rajiv Modi

The petitioner holds Bulgarian citizenship and she joined the company in 2022. According to the petitioner, Modi told her that she would need to "compromise some things for the job". Modi has also been accused often misbehaved with her in the presence of staff.

Another top official of the company, Johnson Mathew, has also been named in the complaint.

Police and lower courts rejected the complaint

The petitioner claimed that she also approached Mahila police station in Vastrapur to file a complaint, but despite repeated submissions and written evidence, her complaint was not registered.

She alleges that she had applied to register a complaint in the lower court. However, that plea was rejected by the court.

Tricked into withdrawing the complaint

However, it was alleged by the petitioner's counsel that ACP Himla Joshi of Mahila police station took her signatures on some papers, which stated that she has no objection against the accused, and she has withdrawn the application. 

According to counsel, the ACP had tricked the petitioner into getting her signatures presenting some excuse.

Moreover, the petitioner has also knocked on the doors of the Gujarat State Commission for Women, and other police stations with 28 pieces of evidence along with an affidavit. When these efforts yielded no result, she had to go to the high court.

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