Pune Crime Files: Who burgled and vandalised Sangeeta Bijlani’s bungalow? Mystery remains unsolved

While no arrests have been made in the case yet, Gill assured Bijlani they would intensify the investigation and nab the burglars, said Mohammad Mujeeb Khan, 54, who lodged the First Information Report (FIR) regarding the theft at the Lonavala Rural Police Station on July 19, 2025.

When contacted, Khan said Bijlani met Gill on September 19 to “express her gratitude”, and timely assistance and support she received from the police. Khan said Gill assured Bijlani of solving the theft case. “During the meeting, she also sought guidance on obtaining a firearm licence”.

A bungalow ransacked

As stated in the FIR, Khan is the personal assistant (PA) of Bijlani’s ex-husband and former Indian cricket team captain Mohammad Azharuddin. According to the FIR, Azharuddin called Khan, a resident of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, at around 9.45 am on July 18, after he came to know about the theft from Bijlani.

Azharuddin asked Khan to visit the bungalow, speak to Bijlani, and file a complaint with the local police. Accordingly, Khan called Bijlani over the phone.

Over the call, the actor told Khan that when she came to her bungalow from Mumbai on the morning of July 18, its main door was open, which she had locked during her visit about four months ago. Bijlani said when she went inside, the furniture and other items in the main hall, kitchen, and all bedrooms in the bungalow were ransacked.

The Pune Rural police said there were no security guards at the actor’s bungalow when the theft took place. (Express Photo)

Bijlani filmed the vandalised bungalow. An old television worth Rs 7,000 installed in the main hall and a cash worth Rs 50,000 kept in her father’s room were stolen, and another TV installed in her room was broken. As stated in the FIR, Bijlani also found abusive words written on a sliding glass door of the gallery on the first floor of the bungalow.

An ongoing probe

Khan reached the bungalow along with a police team around 7.30 pm on July 18. Meanwhile, Bijlani submitted a complaint to the SP, Pune Rural police. Subsequently, an FIR was lodged against the unidentified accused under sections 331 (3), 331(4), 305(a), 324(4), and 324(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

As per the FIR, the burglars entered the bungalow by breaking the wall compound mesh on the rear side. The police suspect that the burglars then broke into the bungalow by tampering with the window grills on the first floor.

The Pune Rural police said there was no watchman or security guard at the spot, and that CCTVs at the bungalow were also damaged. They said Bijlani came to the bungalow on March 7, and so the theft took place sometime between 4 pm on March 7 and 9.30 am on July 18.

During the investigation, a forensic team found two suspicious fingerprints at the bungalow. “The fingerprints did not match any history sheeter on the police record. There was no CCTV footage of the accused. Investigation in this case is still on. The accused have not been identified yet,” Dinesh Tayade, Inspector, Lonavala Rural Police Station, said.

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