Issue 1 · Case 3 · 8 August 2026
Bombay school desk · 1957 · Sushila Ketkar
The Byculla Clinic Key
A medicine cupboard stood open after the 1957 clinic round, with its key off the duty board.
REPORT: Byculla, 1957. At the end of the afternoon clinic, the matron found the medicine cupboard open. Its key should have been returned to the duty board. She has suspended dispensing from that cupboard until staff check its contents and account for the key. The nurse, compounder, records assistant and orderly have each submitted a statement. The matron compared the four accounts with the cupboard check and the afternoon duty records. The person who gave the false statement is responsible for this incident. Identify that person, the place they visited and the item they carried.
Library counter adds a rainy-afternoon register
The Five Gardens reading room has set aside a ruled register for borrowed umbrellas and satchels while the monsoon clouds gather over its verandah.
Roshan D’Souza's handling record names two items
Only the Stock sheet or the Dosage spoon could have been the item Roshan D’Souza carried.
Tram bells carry through the first drizzle
Morning riders were advised to keep their fountain-pen notes wrapped as a brief shower made the pavements near the circle slick before breakfast.
Keshav Patil's signed account enters the tally
Keshav Patil stated: “I visited the Medicine store.”
Handwriting medal shared by two patient pupils
A small Matunga school awarded its copybook medal jointly after two pupils kept equally clean margins through the term, according to the head clerk.
Consulting room traced to the Cotton roll record
Whoever carried the Cotton roll visited the Consulting room.
CLASSIFIED
Cotton rolls wrapped for clinic rounds
Byculla Medical Supply packs cotton, spoons, and cupboard labels for nurses who can hear a missing key from two rooms away.
Harmonium rehearsal opens the annual-day programme
A neighbourhood music teacher will lead a short harmonium rehearsal before the curtain rises, with the handbell kept by the stage manager until the final cue.
Amina Merchant's signed account enters the tally
Amina Merchant's signed statement reads: “I carried the Cotton roll.”
Cycle shed key to be returned before noon
The caretaker asks families using the rain-dark shed to leave its brass key at the front office, so the younger pupils are not kept waiting at dismissal.
Witness tally flags one false claim
In the matron’s afternoon-round file, among the four signed statements, exactly one is false.
CLASSIFIED
Palm Court Irani Café keeps the sugar jar ready
Palm Court Irani Café offers bun maska, brun pav and a strong cup of chai beside a bentwood rack of old weeklies. School satchels may rest under the table, not on it.
Roshan D’Souza's signed account enters the tally
Roshan D’Souza's signed statement reads: “I carried the Dosage spoon.”
A request-card bundle waits for a future wireless desk
The postman collected a tied bundle of song requests addressed to a small harbour studio, a quiet early note in the larger case-world archive.
Dilip Shah's signed account enters the tally
Dilip Shah's signed statement reads: “I carried the Stock sheet.”
Washroom traced to the Stock sheet record
Whoever carried the Stock sheet visited the Washroom.
Deduction board
Confirming a pair rules out the other cells in its row and column.
Blank → ○ possible → × ruled out → ✓ matched.
Swipe to compare. Match each icon to the key below.
| 1Roshan D’Souza | 2Keshav Patil | 3Amina Merchant | 4Dilip Shah | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Cupboard key | ||||
| 2Dosage spoon | ||||
| 3Cotton roll | ||||
| 4Stock sheet |
| 1Roshan D’Souza | 2Keshav Patil | 3Amina Merchant | 4Dilip Shah | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Consulting room | ||||
| 2Verandah | ||||
| 3Medicine store | ||||
| 4Washroom |
| 1Cupboard key | 2Dosage spoon | 3Cotton roll | 4Stock sheet | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Consulting room | ||||
| 2Verandah | ||||
| 3Medicine store | ||||
| 4Washroom |
File your accusation
Reading your saved case…
Icon key
| 1Sus 1 | Roshan D’Souza |
|---|---|
| 2Sus 2 | Keshav Patil |
| 3Sus 3 | Amina Merchant |
| 4Sus 4 | Dilip Shah |
| 1Imp 1 | Cupboard key |
|---|---|
| 2Imp 2 | Dosage spoon |
| 3Imp 3 | Cotton roll |
| 4Imp 4 | Stock sheet |
| 1Loc 1 | Consulting room |
|---|---|
| 2Loc 2 | Verandah |
| 3Loc 3 | Medicine store |
| 4Loc 4 | Washroom |