Gawli aide granted bail by Bombay high court

MUMBAI: Former municipal corporator Sunil Ghate, who was arrested for his alleged involvement in threatening a city-based builder along with gangster Arun Gawli, was granted interim bail by Bombay High Court on Thursday.

Justice J N Patel and Justice R S Mohite directed the police to release Ghate on payment of Rs 25,000.

Ghate was arrested by the police on March 10, 2006, and was booked under the stringent Maharastra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) along with Gawli and two of his aides.

However, in July 2006 the High Court quashed the FIR against Gawli and said he should not be charged under MCOCA and directed the police to release all those arrested in the case.

"Before Ghate could be released from jail, the state appealed to the Supreme Court against the order of the High Court and the release was stayed," Ramesh Agarwal, counsel for Ghate said.

Agarwal argued before the court that the FIR had been quashed by the High Court and since the chargesheet had been filed in the case there was no reason for Ghate to continue to remain in jail.

The appeal of the state before the Supreme Court is likely to come up for hearing sometime at the end of January, Agarwal said, adding Ghate could be arrested again if the order of the high court was quashed.