No order on Gawli petition till May 5

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday reserved its order till May 5 on a petition filed by Arun Gawli challenging the police’s move to book him under MCOCA in an alleged extortion case. The interim protection granted to Gawli against arrest in the case will continue till May 5.

The extortion complaint against Gawli was filed at Agripada police station last November by a hotelier Shakeel Qureshi, who alleged that Gawli had demanded ransom from him for settling a dispute between Qureshi and his partner Rajendra Doshi.

However, Qureshi approached the high court stating that the police had pressurised him to file the complaint against Gawli, and he wanted to withdraw it.

The HC had earlier directed the police commissioner to look into Qureshi’s allegations against the police officers and file a report. The report, which found no substance in the Qureshi’s allegations, was filed on Wednesday.

Public prosecutor Satish Borulkar argued that even if the complaint was withdrawn there was enough material to indict Gawli.