KM Nanavati was an Indian naval commander on trial for the murder of Sindhi businessman Prem Ahuja, his wife’s lover.
Wiki/Biography
KM Nanavati was born in 1925 as “Kawas Manekshaw Nanavati” (age 79; time of death). He attended the Royal Naval Academy (also known as Dartmouth) in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States.
appearance
Height: 6′ (approx.)
Weight: 65kg (approx.)
Eye color: black
Hair color: black
family, caste and wife
KM Nanavati belonged to the Zoroastrian family. His father’s name is Manekshaw Nanavati and his mother’s name is Mehra Nanavati. He has a younger brother named Monk. His cousin Bapsi Sidhwa is a writer. He married an English woman named Sylvia Nanavati. He had two sons, one of whom was named Feroze Nanavati, and a daughter named Tannaz.
KM Nanavati and his wife Sylvia Nanavati
KM Nanavati’s family; bottom row – his son Feroz and his daughter Tanaz
tragic story
KM Nanavati is a senior commander in the Indian Navy who lives in Mumbai with his wife Sylvia and their three children. Due to official duties, he is often away from home for long periods of time. His wife Sylvia fell in love with Prem Bhagwandas Ahuja, Prem Bhagwandas Ahuja was A famous Sindhi socialite and friend of Kawas Nanawati.
Prem Bhagwandas Ahuja
On April 18, 1959, Kawas Nanavati returned home to find Sylvia distant and anxious. After questioning, Kavas discovered that Sylvia was having an affair with Prem Ahuja. Kavas was frustrated. He asked Sylvia if she would marry Prem. She remained silent the entire time. Some reports said she asked Kavas for a divorce so she could marry Prem, but doubted Prem would marry her. This led Kavas to take matters into his own hands.
On April 27, 1989, Kavas drove Sylvia and his children to a matinee performance of Tom Thumb at the Metro Theater. He went to the naval base in Mumbai, from where Kawas picked up his service pistol. Kavas went to Prem’s apartment and reportedly asked Prem if he would accept responsibility for his affair with Sylvia and marry her. Prem taunts him as if he would marry every woman he sleeps with. Kavas became enraged and shot him three times in the chest, killing him. 
After killing him, he surrendered to Deputy Police Chief John Lobo.
John Lobo, Case Manager KM Nanavati
judgment
Prem Ahuja’s sister, Mamie Ahuja, filed a lawsuit against Kawas, accusing him of murdering his brother. After multiple trials, the jury voted 8 to 1 in favor of Kawas, declaring him “not guilty.” Sessions Judge Ratilal Bhaichand Mehta held that the acquittal was perverse and transferred the case to the Bombay High Court. The High Court found Kawas guilty of what amounted to murder and sentenced him to life in prison. The Supreme Court upheld this ruling on November 11, 1961. Three years later, the then Maharashtra governor Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit pardoned him citing ethno-political conspiracy.
die
KM Nanavati died on July 24, 2003 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
fact
- Prem Ahuja was a womanizer and had many relationships, some of which were allegedly with the army and the wives of high-ranking officers.
- Prem was at his residence, having just returned from get off work. He decided to take a bath when Kawas Nanavati rushed into his room, towel tied around his waist and combing his hair.
- A tabloid called “Blitz” headed by Russi Karanjia reported the entire story of KM Nanavati case. It plays an important role in giving the story a sympathetic turn and portrays Kavas as the “wronged husband” and Prem as the “playboy”. At that time, Blitzkrieg was sold at Rs 2 per copy, higher than the normal price of 25 paise.
- Decades later, the Hindustan Times tried to contact Kawas in Canada, but he refused to meet with the newspaper and wrote a letter saying: “This story is a regrettable part of my life for me. Part of it I wish to forget.”
- Following the Supreme Court verdict, Kavas had to resign. His children had a difficult time at school and all their possessions were sold to pay legal bills.
- Ram Jethmalani, a lawyer hired by Prem’s sister Mamie, told reporters that a Sindhi man named Bhai Pratap was sentenced to 18 months in prison for a minor cheating case, and the Bombay High Court increased the sentence to 5 years. He further recalled that KM Nanavati’s pardon was being weighed along with Bhai Pratap’s pardon.
Ram Jesmalani
- Kawas Nanavati was close to the Nehru-Gandhi family and Jawaharlal Nehru’s sister Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit was the Maharashtra chief at the time of his acquittal Governor of the state. His close ties with the Nehru-Gandhi family reportedly worked in his favour.
- After the amnesty, Kawas Nanavati and his family moved to Ontario, Canada, and lived a life away from the public.
- The case was so high-profile and the public was so obsessed with it that Nanavati’s toy revolver and Prem Ahuja’s towel were sold on the streets of Mumbai.
- The case of Kawas Nanavati has attracted the attention of several authors. There are books like Nanavati Ka Mukadama, The Death of Mr. Love, and Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children that fictionalize the case in one chapter.
- There have been numerous films based on the plot of the case, including “Yeh Rastey Hain Pyar Ke” (1963), “Achanak” (1973) and “Rustom” (2016).
- KM Nanavati’s case is the last to be tried by a jury in India as the government has abolished jury trials in most cases, but the Parsis case is still being tried by jury in their matrimonial dispute.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education