2 days ago
Surat CP invokes PASA against 14, including ex-councillor
Surat: Surat police commissioner Anupam Singh Gahlaut has invoked the Gujarat Prevention of Anti-Social Activities Act (PASA) against 14 persons, including three-term Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) councillor Prakash Desai.
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The former councillor, who was accused in three FIRs filed by Udhna police for
, was shifted to the Rajkot jail after the PASA order.
Desai was first arrested by Surat special operations group (SOG) police for allegedly accepting extortion money at his house. The complainant reportedly recorded a video of Desai in the act. According to police, Desai would 'misuse' the Right to Information (RTI) Act and would lodge complaints with the SMC to extort money from businessmen, traders and school owners, threatening them with the demolition of their properties.
Desai previously served three terms as an independent councillor from the Udhna ward.
In addition to Desai, the history-sheeter Sajid Kothari, alias Sajju Kothari, was also booked under PASA and sent to Bhuj jail. Kothari has a criminal history involving 35 cases, including attempted murder, extortion, abduction, rioting, Arms Act violations, prohibition offences and gambling. This is the seventh time Kothari has been jailed under PASA.
He has also been charged under the Gujarat Control of Terrorism and Organised Crime (GujCTOC) Act twice and was previously externed from Surat due to his alleged criminal activities.
The others booked under PASA are history-sheeters Rajuram Bishnoi, Shravan Bishnoi, Dipak Yadav, Sunil Sadashiv, Shana Parveen Shaikh, Mehul Parmar, Durgesh Sinh, Alpesh Lashkari, Jitu Tank, Dilip Rathod, Mahesh Nayka and Rizwan Khan.
These persons have been shifted to jails in Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Bhuj and Mehsana.
