26 years on, CBI court acquits gangster Ravi Pujari in Dawood gang aide murder case
The verdict was pronounced on Tuesday by special judge AM Patil. However, the detailed judgment is yet to be released. This marks the first case in which Pujari was tried following his deportation from Senegal in 2021.
Sharma was gunned down on September 9, 1999, in Andheri's Teli Galli Cross Lane while driving his Mahindra Jeep. According to the prosecution, assailants in a Maruti car overtook and intercepted his vehicle around 10.15 am before opening fire, killing him on the spot. His murder was believed to be a result of gangland rivalry.
CBI investigators alleged that gangster Chhota Rajan had ordered Sharma's killing as retaliation for the JJ Hospital shootout of 1992 — a deadly attack carried out by Dawood's men to avenge the killing of his brother-in-law, Ibrahim Parkar, by the rival Arun Gawli gang.
Sharma was suspected to be among the 24-member hit squad, led by gangster Subhashsingh Thakur, that stormed ward no 18 of JJ Hospital on September 22, 1992. In that ambush, Dawood's men killed Gawli gang shooter Sailesh Haldankar along with two police constables who tried to retaliate.
According to the CBI, Rajan later tasked Pujari with eliminating members of the Dawood gang involved in the shootout, resulting in Sharma's murder. Rajan himself was discharged from the case in December 2022 due to lack of 'cogent evidence'.
Ravi Pujari, once closely associated with the Rajan gang, vanished from India in 1994. He allegedly lived across West Africa under various aliases, most notably as a businessman named Antony Fernandes. Acting on a tip-off, Indian authorities traced him to Senegal and, with the help of local officials, secured his deportation.
On February 22, 2020, Pujari was handed over to Indian authorities and brought back by a Karnataka police team. He is also facing multiple charges related to extortion attempts against politicians in Karnataka.
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