Chhota Rajan, already serving a life term for the 2011 murder of journalist J Dey, has been handed another life sentence by a special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court in Mumbai. The court, presided over by Special Judge A.M. Patil, found Rajan guilty in the 2001 murder case of hotelier Jaya Shetty.
Rajan, whose real name is Rajendra Sadashiv Nikalje, was convicted under Sections 302 (murder) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code, along with various provisions of the MCOCA. The court also found Rajan and four others guilty of conspiring to kill Shetty, the owner of four Mumbai restaurants, including the Golden Crown on Grant Road. Rajan was sentenced to rigorous life imprisonment and fined ₹16 lakh. Previously, three co-accused — Ajay Mohite, Pramod Dhonde, and Rahul Pansare — had been convicted in the same case.
On May 4, 2001, Shetty was fatally shot by two unidentified gunmen, allegedly members of Rajan’s gang, on the first floor of his hotel. Shortly after the murder, Hemant Pujari, another close associate of Rajan, threatened Shetty’s family over the phone, demanding extortion money. The police registered the murder case following a complaint from the hotel manager, revealing that Shetty had been receiving extortion threats from Pujari. Pujari remains at large.
Rajan, after evading capture for nearly three decades, was arrested by Indonesian police at Bali airport on October 25, 2015. In May 2018, he and eight others were sentenced to life imprisonment for their involvement in journalist Dey’s 2011 murder. Rajan also faces charges in 70 other cases across Maharashtra.
Source : NDTV
