Two brothers booked, one arrested for extortion bid

One person has been arrested and another is still at large for allegedly extorting money from a contractor demolishing a building in Mulund, Mumbai. The accused demanded money in exchange for allowing trucks to leave the site loaded with debris.

MUMBAI: The Navghar police have arrested one person and are on the lookout for his brother, both of whom allegedly extorted money from a contractor demolishing a dilapidated building in Mulund. The arrested accused was identified as Satish Gaikwad, while his brother Chandrasen Gaikwad is still at large.

HT Image

According to the police, a real estate firm had engaged Kurla West resident Mohamad Anis Idris Khan (75) on contract, to demolish a transit building in New PMGP colony in Mulund East and clear scrap steel and other debris from the site.

Demolition work started on August 1. But on October 1, when the contractor’s son Monish Khan and site supervisor Rehman Chaudhary were overseeing the loading of iron rods and debris on a truck, Chandrasen Gaikwad visited the site, abused them and demanded money. The elderly contractor reached the site and paid ₹5,000 to Gaikwad after negotiations, said a police officer.

The Gaikwad brothers visited the site again later and allegedly threatened Khan. They demanded a sum of ₹8,000 for every truck leaving the New PMGP Colony carrying debris.

The brothers visited the site again on October 22 and started abusing Khan as he had failed to meet their demand. They parked their vehicle at the entrance for three consecutive days, preventing trucks loaded with debris from leaving the colony, said senior police inspector Dattaram Girap from the Navghar police station.

“The accused repeatedly called site supervisor Chaudhary on his mobile during this period and told him that they would remove the vehicle from the entrance if his employer met their demands,” said Girap.

The contractor was scared and approached the Navghar police and narrated the incident. The police verified the incident, and a case was registered against Chandrasen Gaikwad and Satish Gaikwad on Saturday. The duo was booked for multiple charges including extortion, wrongful restraint and wrongful confinement for extortion, said Girap.