MUMBAI, Oct. 31 -- A sessions court has set aside a magistrate's order directing criminal proceedings against three former trustees of the Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust (LKMMT) over allegations of black magic at the hospital, holding that the discovery of eight pots buried beneath an office floor did not, by itself, establish an offence under Maharashtra's anti-black magic law. Allowing a revision application filed by Chetan Mehta, Nimesh Sheth and Ayushman Mehta, Additional Sessions Judge Kunal Dhanaji Jadhav held that the complaint lacked prima facie evidence linking the three to the alleged act. The court noted that there was no expert report establishing whether the alleged bones recovered from the pots were human remains, no clarity on when the pots were buried and no evidence attributing a specific role to the applicants. The former trustees had challenged a magistrate's December 8, 2025 order issuing process against them under the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act, 2013. The court questioned the magistrate's decision to initiate proceedings, observing that process should not have been issued based on a "vague complaint without any prima facie evidence for commission of offence under Black Magic Act". The complaint was filed by incumbent trustee Prashant Mehta, who alleged that eight pots containing ash, rice, hair and other ritualistic articles had been buried beneath the flooring of his office at the hospital in Bandra to harm him and other trustees. The articles were discovered during renovation work in September 2024. Mehta alleged that the former trustees had resorted to "evil and sinister practices" to retain control over the trust and cause harm to those administering it. Examining the evidence, the court noted that the two witnesses examined before the magistrate spoke about finding eight small pots containing ash, rice and hair. Neither, however, had reported finding human bones. The court noted the absence of an expert report confirming if the bones and hair were human. The judge observed that the complaint failed to specify who buried the pots (Kalashas), when, or under whose instructions, attributing no specific role to the applicants. Merely placing pots under a floor does not constitute an offence under the 2013 Act, which targets specified harmful practices invoking supernatural powers. Although the complaint alleged the rituals harmed Prashant Mehta's health, the court found no material linking his condition to the buried items, nor proof of whether his health declined before or after their discovery. Referring to the longstanding Lilavati Hospital administration dispute, the judge noted the black magic allegations surfaced only after rival groups assumed control following a September 2023 Supreme Court order....