In Mumbai, officials from the crime branch informed a special court on Friday that they were unable to locate documents pertaining to the application of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against Arun Gulab Gawli, a former gangster turned politician, in connection with an extortion case from 2005. This disclosure came following a directive from special MCOCA judge BD Shelke to present the absent paperwork, as reported by Hindustan Times.
Arun Gawli, who is currently serving a life sentence at Nagpur Central Prison for the murder of Shiv Sena leader and corporator Kamlakar Jamsandekar, is out on bail. The extortion case against him and his gang members involves alleged extortion, pecuniary gains and threats to grab properties in Mumbai, Thane and Kalyan in 2005.
Gawli’s lawyer had requested the documents for cross-examination in the extortion case. The special public prosecutor explained that the documents were misplaced during the 2013 Mumbai floods and are currently untraceable. Last month, the court noted that vague statements from authorities were unacceptable and stressed that the trial, already over ten years old, could not be delayed indefinitely. The court demanded a specific timeframe for submitting the required documents.Previously, the court had given the prosecution 15 days to submit the documents as demanded by the defence. However, during the last hearing, crime branch officers reported that the documents remain untraceable, said the report.
The 2005 incident involved a city-based builder receiving threatening calls from Gawli's gang, demanding Rs 50 lakh to continue a redevelopment project at Ram Shyam Co-operative Housing Society. The builder was allegedly given death threats and ordered to go to Dagdi Chawl, Gawli's infamous former residence. Later, Gawli and his associates were booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including dacoity, extortion, and criminal intimidation, as well as sections of the Indian Arms Act and MCOCA.