Chhota Rajan gang member arrested after 16 years in Mumbai

Representative image. Pic/Istock

A member of the Chhota Rajan gang, who was absconding in an attempt to murder case for 16 years, has been arrested from the eastern suburbs of Mumbai, police said on Friday.

Vilas Balaram Pawar, alias Raju, aged 62, was nabbed by a team from the Deonar Police Station in the Chembur area on Thursday evening, an officer said.

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The police officer stated that Pawar is involved in serious crimes such as murder and attempt to murder and has cases registered against him under the Arms Act.

According to news agency PTI, Pawar had allegedly shot and injured a man in Ghatla village in 1992 and was arrested in the case. The accused was released on bail in 2008, and had since remained absconding, the official said, adding that Pawar kept changing his location to evade arrest.

He lived in the Nerul area of Navi Mumbai and supplied labour to construction sites, police said.

According to the officer, the accused was an active member of the Chhota Rajan gang and was involved in gunning down a man in Dadar in the 1990s, stated PTI.

The officer said Pawar was produced before a court on Friday and was remanded in judicial custody.

One injured in firing near D Mart in Sanpada area of Navi Mumbai, probe underway

One person was injured after two unidentified people fired several rounds in Sanpada area of Navi Mumbai in Maharashtra on Friday morning and later fled the crime scene, the police said, adding that a probe into the matter was underway.

The duo was on a motorcycle and shot several rounds before fleeing, said an officer.

According to Sanpada Police officers, the incident occurred on Friday around 9.30 am. The two bike-borne assailants opened five to six rounds of fire before fleeing the scene, PTI reported. Locals and eyewitnesses reported the matter to the police who reached the spot to conduct investigation.

Navi Mumbai Police officers identified the victim as 48-year-old Rajaram Thoke, a garbage contractor at the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC), PTI reported.

According to officers, moments before the incident, Thoke was seated inside his car, parked near a roadside tea stall, sipping tea when shots were fired. Within a span of 18 to 23 seconds, five rounds were fired allegedly at him by unidentified assailants, PTI reported.

Four of the bullets struck Thoke, causing injuries to his abdomen, shoulder, and leg. He is currently in critical condition and undergoing treatment at a private hospital, police said.

(With inputs from PTI)