Exhibit Notes
Single sheet of A5 paper — cream, unlined. Found folded once inside a sealed manila envelope in the locked lower-right drawer of Vikram Desai's desk. Drawer unlocked with key recovered from deceased's jacket pocket. Paper in good condition. Writing is in blue ballpoint ink. Handwriting confirmed as Vikram Desai's by comparison with known specimens from firm correspondence.
Note — Transcription (Exact)
RM — SP · HDFC 4421 · BC complaint · call KM tomorrow
Note appears hastily written. No date marked on the document itself. Based on context and ink condition, forensic document examination estimates this was written on or shortly before 6 March 2025.
Abbreviation Decoder — Investigator Reference
| Abbreviation | Cross-Reference | Likely Meaning |
|---|
| RM | Suspect Profiles / E08 | Reena Mehrotra — Junior Partner, Desai & Associates |
| SP | E17 (Pack C) | Sharma & Partners — opposing counsel firm, currently adverse party in an active Desai & Associates matter |
| HDFC 4421 | E08, E14 (Pack C) | HDFC bank account ending 4421 — registered to RM Consultancy Services, sole signatory: Reena Mehrotra. Received ₹18L from client settlement funds. |
| BC complaint | E17 (Pack C) | Bar Council complaint — the Maharashtra Bar Council. A formal complaint would be the mechanism to report professional misconduct by an advocate. |
| KM tomorrow | — | Likely a person — initials KM. Possibly a colleague or Bar Council contact. Vikram did not survive to make this call. |
Investigator Summary
This note is Vikram Desai's own shorthand record of what he had uncovered about Reena Mehrotra on the day of his death. The four entries correspond to two separate lines of wrongdoing: (1) the diversion of client settlement funds to her private account (RM — HDFC 4421), and (2) ghostwriting for a rival law firm (RM — SP). The planned Bar Council complaint (BC complaint) and the call to an unidentified third party (KM) indicate Vikram was preparing to act — and that Reena had reason to know it, having spoken to him twice on the phone that evening.