The Bombay High Court on Tuesday has directed underworld don Chhota Rajan to make hotelier BR Shetty, who was allegedly shot at on the gangster’s order, a respondent in the appeal filed by him challenging his conviction in the case.
Justice Sarang Kotwal was hearing appeals filed by Rajan, through advocate Ayush Pasbole, challenging his conviction in four cases.
Special public prosecutor Pradeep Gharat, appearing for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), informed the court that Rajan had not only challenged his conviction in Shetty’s case, but also in three other cases as well.
In October 2012, Shetty was shot at in suburban Andheri by two persons on a motorbike who fired four rounds at him. Shetty received bullet injuries on his shoulder but managed to walk to the nearest police station and was taken to a hospital from there.
CBI has claimed that the firing was done at Rajan’s behest to settle scores with Shetty for being close to his rival and cop Pradeep Sharma.
In 2019, the sessions court convicted Rajan, Satish alias Kalia, Salvan Chellapan, Deepak Upadhyaya, Nityanand Naik and Talvinder Singh alias Sonu and sentenced them to eight years in prison. The court also imposed fine of Rs 5 lakh which was to be given to Shetty as compensation. This amount is still to be paid.
Rajan was arrested from Bali in 2015 and brought to India. Rajan was sentenced to life in the journalist J Dey murder case in 2018. It is against these convictions and sentences that Rajan has filed an appeal in the High Court.
HC has asked Rajan to add the names of victims in all the four appeals as respondents. The court has said that it will start hearing the appeals filed by Rajan from November 21, 2022.
