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ShareThe Bombay high court on Thursday directed the police authorities to consider invocation of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against officers of Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai and Central Public Works Department in the Sara-Sahara illegal construction case.
These officers, including the then Ward A officer Rajendra Wale, have not been prosecuted so far despite the investigating officer's opinion that they too were involved.
Former journalist Ketan Tirodkar had filed a PIL seeking prosecution of these three officers. In all nine people were tried in the case and three were convicted.
During the trial, investigating officer Shankar Kamble, however, told the court that he did not arrest Wale despite having evidence against him, because he had "instructions from the Mantralaya to go slow against Wale".
ACP Kamble said instructions had come from the then home minister and NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal. Tirodkar had sought action against Bhujbal too, but he dropped it later as the HC observed that there was no evidence against Bhujbal.
The court ordered the commissioner of police to decide if MCOCA should be invoked against Rajendra Wale, Devnath Kurmi and DG Tambulwadar. The commissioner has to consider the case "in the light of evidence collected by investigating officer and opinion recorded by public prosecutor as well as high court's own observations", the court said.
The commissioner has been given time till December 15.
Sara and Sahara, the twin shopping complexes, came up on the Central Public Works Department's land near the Mumbai police commissioner's office in the late 1990s. It was suspected that fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim funded the construction.
Eventually, nine people, including four MCGM officers, were prosecuted under MCOCA for allowing the illegal construction on the central government's land. HC has observed that "closing of cases against these three officers (Wale, Kurmi and Tambulwadkar) has resulted in miscarriage of justice" and the "high court must step in to set criminal law in motion".
