The High Court on Thursday directed the police to lodge an FIR against police officers for the fake encounter of an alleged Chhota Rajan aide.
Ramnarayan Gupta alias Lakkhan Bhhaiya was killed in 2006, allegedly in a fake encounter.
The division bench of Justices B.H. Marlapalle and Roshan Dalvi formed a Special Investigation Team.
It was headed by Deputy Commissioner of Police KM Prasanna to probe the encounter in which a police squad led by police inspector Pradeep Suryavanshi killed Ramnarayan.
The court was hearing a petition filed by advocate Ramprasad, Ramnarayan’s brother, alleging that his brother was picked up by the police and killed.
The court has asked Prasanna to record Ramprasad’s statement and treat it as an FIR. A progress report has to be submitted in four weeks. The court has also given liberty to Prasanna to conduct a lie detector test, if required, on Ramprasad, Ramnarayan’s friend Anil Bheda and his wife Aruna Bheda.
Shyam Marwadi, Ramprasad’s lawyer, argued that Ramnarayan and Anil were picked from outside a cellphone shop in Navi Mumbai on November 11, 2006. However, Ramnarayan was shown as killed in an encounter by a police team headed by Suryavanshi. Bheda was released.
The shopkeeper alerted Ramprasad who then sent telegrams to the Commissioners of Police of Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai. All the telegrams were sent at 4 pm and were delivered within two hours, said Marwadi.
{{/usCountry}}The shopkeeper alerted Ramprasad who then sent telegrams to the Commissioners of Police of Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai. All the telegrams were sent at 4 pm and were delivered within two hours, said Marwadi.
{{/usCountry}}Marwadi said other officers involved in the encounter are Police Inspector Dilip Palande, Assistant Police Inspectors Nitin Pratape and Arvind Sarwankar.
The court also accepted an unconditional apology tendered by former director general of police A.N. Roy — who was commissioner of police (CP) in 2006. Roy had earlier told the court that CP office had not received any telegram.