Gangster Arun Gawli, brother, five others acquitted in 20-year-old extortion case
Special Judge B D Shelke said there was no sufficient evidence to prove the case against the accused. They were acquitted of charges including extortion, criminal conspiracy of the Indian Penal Code and relevant sections of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act.
The present case against Gawli and his co-accused was based on a complaint by a builder, who had claimed that his gang members had demanded and forced him to give money to complete a project through the Slum Rehabilitation Authority in Dadar. The complainant had claimed that in October 2005, his employee had received a call on their office landline.
The caller asked him to come to Dagdi Chawl in Byculla, where Gawli resided and allegedly operated his gang out of. The complainant alleged to have received four such calls and was told that he will be killed if he does not come to Dagdi Chawl.
The complainant had said he subsequently went there and was introduced to Vijay Ahir, Gawli's brother. The complainant had claimed that Rs 50 lakh were demanded from him to go ahead with the development project. He claimed that out of fear he agreed to pay Rs 10 lakh in instalments and paid the gang Rs 7 lakh and then another lakh for the celebration of Navratri festival, between December 2005 and May 2006. He said when he again received a call for further payment of Rs 3 lakh, he approached the Mumbai Police.
During the trial, one of the accused turned into an approver, agreeing to depose against the other co-accused as a prosecution witness. The prosecution had claimed that Gawli was a notorious don, and his gang was targeting those engaged in construction and development projects and after the murder of councillor Kamlakar Jamsandekar by the gang, there was fear of the gang. The lawyers for the accused said they were falsely implicated and there are lacunae in the probe as the investigator has not collected call data records, CCTV footage and other evidence to show that the calls were made to the complainant.
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