Three country-made revolvers, 1 pistol, 8 cartridges, detonators and gelatine sticks found in car of Chinchwad resident.
The Pune crime branch (unit 1) of the Pune police on Saturday night arrested a Chinchwad-based businessman for illegally possessing explosives and firearms.
The suspect, Gopal Hariram Khatri, 46, was arrested in front of a hotel in Kalewadi and booked under various sections of the Explosive Substances Act, 1908, the Arms Act, 1959, and the Bombay Police Act, 1951.
The police seized 10 detonators, eight gelatine sticks, two bags containing white granules and a grey chemical from his car. Three country-made revolvers, one pistol and eight live cartridges were also seized. Khatri is yet to explain how he was in possession of the illegal firearms and explosives, the police said.
There are three police cases pending against Khatri, they added. Khatri was produced before a city court, which remanded him in police custody till September 20.
Assistant public prosecutor Jyoti Lakka told the court the suspect was not cooperating in the investigation and misleading the police. “He has not told us why he was in possession of the substances, so the police need to investigate the matter thoroughly,” Lakka told the court.
Considering recent terror attacks in the country, the motive behind this large cache of explosives needs to be unraveled by the police. The accomplices in the case need to be nabbed.
“The suspect claims he has purchased a hotel in Bangkok (Thailand), called Bombay Inn. The money trail and sources of his income need be investigated, as also whether he has invested black money in it,” she added.
Khatri’s lawyer, Sushil Mancharkar, argued there was no need to arrest Khatri under the Explosive Substances Act, saying it was not applicable. He said sections of the Arms Act and the Bombay Police Act were bailable, so Khatri be remanded in magisterial custody.
Khatri’s rivals could have hatched a conspiracy to create problems for him, he added. When the judge asked Khatri whether he had any complaints against the police, he said the police let two men go and arrested him after seizing the materials.
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