Police have arrested an associate of late drug smuggler Iqbal Mirchi for allegedly demolishing a movie theatre and trying to sell it for Rs 15 crore, even as the property was provisionally attached by the ED in a money laundering case, officials said on Thursday, reported news agency PTI.

The accused, Abdul Kadir Ali Mohammed (75), was arrested by the V P Road police in south Mumbai on Wednesday, an official said, reported PTI.

A complaint was filed by personnel of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) recently that the New Roshan Talkies theatre in Girgaon, which was attached by them, was demolished and the plot was sold, he said.

A case was subsequently registered against Abdul on charges of cheating, trespass and mischief under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, he said.
The theatre, linked to Iqbal Mirchi, was attached by the ED in 2020, the official said.

Despite the attachment, Abdul demolished the theatre last year, claiming its ownership. He allegedly made a deal to sell the plot to a businessman from Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh for Rs 15 crore and took a token amount, he said, reported PTI.

The ED sleuths suspect Abdul tampered with the property records and fraudulently got the plot transferred in his name, the official said.

Abdul and Mirchi, who knew each other for decades, purchased the theatre in 1982 for Rs 6 lakh jointly and most of the contribution was from Abdul`s account, he said, reported PTI.

After being arrested, Abdul was produced before a local court which sent him in police custody till Friday, the official said.

Cop assault case: Ex-MLA Harshvardhan Jadhav gets one-year imprisonment

Meanwhile, a court in Nagpur has sentenced former MLA Harshvardhan Raibhan Jadhav to one-year imprisonment in a 2014 case of assaulting a police officer, reported PTI.

Additional District and Sessions Judge R J Rai pronounced the sentence on Wednesday.

Jadhav, the son-in-law of BJP leader and former Union minister Raosaheb Danve, was accused of slapping a Nagpur police inspector.

He formerly represented the Kannad constituency in the Maharashtra legislative assembly. He had been a member of the Shiv Sena, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, and Shiv Swarajya Paksha at various times.

(With inputs from PTI)

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