Month's mind: Why no probe, arrests yet in Nitin Desai's suicide, demands kin

Mumbai, Sep 2 (IANS) Exactly a month after the renowned art director Nitin Chandrakant Desai’s ‘suicide’, his family is flummoxed over why the promised investigation into his death has not commenced nor any arrests made so far.

Nitin Desai’s uncle, Shrikant Desai said that Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy CMs Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar had made statements to investigate the matter from all possible angles.

“Today it’s a month since his demise (August 2) inside his ND Art World Studio in Karjat, Raigad. The government had promised a thorough investigation and action against the officials of Edelweiss Group. Till date, nothing seems to have moved in any direction,” Shrikant Desai told IANS.

It may be recalled that the suicide of Nitin Desai, 57, had stunned the entertainment industry in India and abroad, and kicked off a major furore even in official circles as he enjoyed a good rapport with many political bigwigs.

“The Raigad Police keep coming to make searches at the studio… We are fully cooperating and giving them all the information required, but we don’t see any concrete progress so far,” rued Shrikant Desai.

Desai - who was buried under a huge debt of over Rs 250-crore and declared a non performing asset (NPA) - faced insolvency proceedings under CIRP initiated against him in July by the National Company Law Tribunal, Mumbai. 

His family, friends including Uran MLA Mahesh Baldi and others have expressed apprehensions that the financial crises he encountered may have unnerved him and prompted him to take the ultimate step on August 2.

Shrikant Desai, who was helping him run the show in Karjat, claimed that contrary to some reports, of the Rs 181-crore availed from Edelweiss Group, his nephew had already repaid around Rs 90-crore.

“He had investors ready to help out… However, the Edelweiss Group officials blocked his moves, pressured him, charged interest at exorbitant rates, and also threatened to send bouncers to and capture the studio premises. He had mentioned all this even in his ‘suicide recordings’ which have been confiscated by the police,” Shrikant Desai contended.

He said that his frequent pleas to the police on acting against the Edelweiss Group officials evoke evasive replies, they claim that the executives are not available, their phones are switched off, etc, though they are regularly seen in various events.

The family also awaits a decision by the state government on the fate and future of the ND Art World, set up in 2004-2005 over nearly 45 acres in a picturesque area, which is likely this month.

“As Nitin Desai revealed in his tape-recordings, the Edelweiss Group people, whom he has named, somehow wanted to grab the studio and the prime property where it stands, and hence they did not cooperate with him,” said Shrikant Desai.

He challenged the Edelweiss Group executives that if they are innocent, “then prove it”, urged the police to take action against them, and called upon the government to initiate the promised probe.

With uncertainties looming ahead, Shrikant Desai said that somehow, the family is trying to continue with 100-odd staffers in employment, paying them part-salaries and hoping that the matter can be resolved “to save Nitin Desai’s dream project”.

“After a month, the initial enthusiasm is sadly lacking among the police and the government. We are hopeful and awaiting justice,” said Shrikant Desai from the studio premises.