The MCOCA court that convicted Arun Gawli in a murder case last week has held that the gangster’s extortion business continued even after he became an MLA. Citing a confession given by one of the convicts, Shrikrishna Gurav, the court judgment elaborates in detail how the office bearers of Gaw-li’s political outfit Akhil Bharatiya Sena ran the extortion racket and a special “prayer room” where victims were tortured.
The 439-page judgment copy in the Shiv Sena corporator Kamlakar Jamsandekar murder case, held that Gurav and Sandeep Gangan’s confessions played a critical role in convicting the accused in the case.
Relying on the confessions, special judge Prithviraj Chavan in the judgment said, “The office bearers of the Akhil Bharatiya Sena and its workers used to supply information about new constructions to Gawli. Gawli then summoned builders to the ground floor of the Gitai building, where there is a special room known as, the bhajanachi kholi (prayer room). It is here that Gawli along with his other henchmen used to extort money. If someone refused to pay, then these henchmen used to assault them with sticks and belts. This proves that an organised crime syndicate was carried out by Arun Gawli.”
The judgment held that the murder was planned a year before it was actually accomplished. Again relying on Gangan’s confession, the judge held that in the first week of December 2006, the office bearers of ABS, Ajit Rane and Pratap Godse had visited the office of the ABS. Godse then gave a bag filled with money to Gawli informing him that it contained `30 lakh and Gawli told the two, “Jamsandekaranche kaam houn jail, tumhi kalji karu naka.’ (I will deal with the Jamsandekar issue, don’t worry).
The judge further said, “After going through the confessional statements of the co-accused, one can safely say that the organised crime syndicate headed by Gawli hatched a well-planned conspiracy with full intention to eliminate Jamsandekar.”