Gangster Ejaz Lakdawala sentenced to life imprisonment in 1996 murder case

A special court in Mumbai on Thursday reportedly convicted and sentenced gangster Ejaz Lakdawala to rigorous imprisonment for life in connection with the murder of a businessman about 28 years ago, reported the PTI.

Jailed gangster Rajendra Nikalje alias Chhota Rajan, a co-accused in the case, was acquitted by the court for want of evidence, as per the PTI.

Special Judge AM Patil held Ejaz Lakdawala, a former associate of fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim, guilty under the Indian Penal Code for murder as well as the Arms Act, according to the PTI.

On October 7, 1996, as per the first information report (FIR), two unknown persons fired at businessman Sayyad Farid Makbul Hussain inside his shop on Mohammad Ali Road and fled the spot. Hussain was rushed to a nearby hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

Mumbai police, which initially investigated the murder, filed a chargesheet against Ejaz Lakdawala, while Chhota Rajan was shown as a wanted accused in the case. 

The case was later probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

In his statement to the police before his death, Hussain had said that the shooter had taken the name `Nana` (Chhota Rajan), the news agency reported.

The court relied on the testimonies of three eyewitnesses and informant Sayyed Sohel Maqbul Hussain, brother of the deceased, as per a PTI report.

Special Public Prosecutor Pradeep Gharat had argued that the statements of witnesses and the complainant were enough to connect the accused with the crime.

Meanwhile, in an another incident, a man convicted along with gangster-turned-politician Arun Gawli in the 2007 Shiv Sena corporator Kamlakar Jamsandekar murder case was held from Navi Mumbai by the Mumbai Crime Branch after he jumped parole in January, a police official said on Thursday, reported the PTI.

Narendra Lalmani Giri (39) was held on Wednesday by Unit III of the Mumbai Crime Branch from Ghansoli in neighbouring Navi Mumbai, the official said, according to the PTI.

Narendra Giri, Arun Gawli and 10 others were sentenced to life imprisonment for Kamlakar Jamsandekar`s murder. Jamsandekar was shot dead at his Asalpha residence in March 2008. The police had also invoked provisions of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) in the case.

(with PTI inputs)