Justice Revati Mohite-Dere granted bail to Sadik alias Banta alias Salman Bangali on a bond of Rs1 lakh recently.
The Bombay high court has granted bail to a suspected member of the Ravi Pujari gang who spent seven years in jail after he was charged under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) for allegedly threatening a businessman to pay extortion money, observing that there has been delay in the trial.
Justice Revati Mohite-Dere granted bail to Sadik alias Banta alias Salman Bangali on a bond of Rs1 lakh recently. While releasing him on bail, the judge observed that Bangali had already undergone more than half of the minimum sentence prescribed for the offence with which he is charged. Hence, he deserves to be enlarged on bail.
The HC also observed that the other accused in this case have been set at large and hence Bangali was being given liberty on the ground of parity. Bangali was booked in 2006 in Turbhe police station in Navi Mumbai for alleged offences punishable under provisions of the Indian Penal Code, Arms Act and MCOCA.
According to the police, the accused along with co-accused Ravindra alias Ramu Bhausaheb Ghare had fired two rounds at the complainant in his office to demand extortion money in the name of gangster Ravi Pujari, while the other accused were standing outside. The judge observed that in the present case, all the co-accused, except Ravindra alias Ramu Bhausaheb Ghare, have been enlarged on bail.
"Moreover, the applicant has neither been identified nor named by any witnesses. Also, there is no recovery at his instance. The material against him is identical to that of the co-accused who have been enlarged on bail, that is, the confessional statement of the co-accused and call detail records," said the judge.
The prosecution opposed his bail alleging that Bangali had scribbled a phone number on a chit and threw it in the office of the complainant. After firing two rounds, all the accused ran away. Ghare in a statement allegedly confessed to the crime by giving a detailed account of the role played by each of the accused.
Defence lawyer S R Chitnis argued that Bangali has not been identified by any witnesses. Also, there was no identification parade, nor was there recovery of any weapon allegedly used in the commission of the offence.
Justice Dere has asked Bangali to cooperate during the trial and restrained him from leaving the limits of Mumbai and Thane without permission from the trial court. He was also asked to deposit his passport, if any, with the investigating officer.
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