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Journalism of Courage
SURAT, July 5: A notorious gangster, Dinesh Laxman Patani (24), involved in a number of serious crimes including rioting and vehicle thefts, escaped from the court premises on Saturday afternoon, the police said.
According to a complaint lodged in the Umra police station by constable Budhabhai Devram — who accompanied the accused to the court — he was instructed to go along with Patani to the court of Judge Dave on the second floor to obtain a transfer warrant after the Mahidharpura police were investigating the accused’s involvement in cases of armed attacks.
According to the Umra police, who are now looking out for the criminal, after Devram brought Patani to the court, he asked him to sit on a bench and took the transfer papers in the court of the judge. But on returning Devram found Patani missing, the police said, adding that he immediately raised an alarm and the entire court premises was cordoned off and a search for the criminal was taken up.
The Umra police, when contacted, stated that although Devram had been questioned by the police, no disciplinary action was taken against him. Any decision in this regard would be taken by the commissioner, they added.
It may be noted that the city police are striving to bust the inter-state gangs responsible for vehicle thefts and Patani’s confessions could have helped the police to solve a number of unsolved vehicle theft cases registered in different police stations here.
Other cases like extortion, carrying of dangerous weapons, rioting and attempt to murder also have been registered against the accused in police stations of the city, the Umra police said adding that a police team has been dispatched to Sabarmati area of Ahmedabad, where the accused resides.
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