Police resent date with Gawli

February 20: Even under detention, the Dagdi don, Arun Gawli, is keeping the Mumbai police busy. While a battery of lawyers have managed to ...

February 20: Even under detention, the Dagdi don, Arun Gawli, is keeping the Mumbai police busy. While a battery of lawyers have managed to keep the don in and around the city with clever manipulation of his court appearances, the Mumbai police are not missing a single chance to bundle him out to Amravati.

Gawli is currently detained under the Maharashtra Prevention of Dangerous Activities (MPDA) Act at Amravati jail where he is supposed to remain until September this year. However, Gawli would rather be in Thane jail, which he regards as his second home, and to ensure this, his lawyers have used a simple modus operandi–obtain a succession of court appearances at close intervals. Gawli was last produced in the court on September 23. There were no hearings for over a month. With the confirmation of his detention on November 7, Gawli began getting dates at very short intervals – November 11, December 5, 8, 9, 18, 29, January 2, 5, 12, 19, 27, February 2, 6-8.

The don’s presence closer to his base makes iteasier for him to carry out his operations and conveniently oversee his criminal empire, allege senior police officers.

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Recently, joint commissioner of police, crime, R S Sharma had conceded that Gawli’s activities were on the rise. The anti-extortion cell had recorded four complaints of extortion against the Gawli gang in a period of one month, while his gang had extended its operations to the north-western suburbs regarded as the stronghold of factions of Dawood Ibrahim gang and the Chhota Rajan gang. During Gawli’s detention in Mumbai, he was invariably kept in the Thane jail. Last month, following a tip-off from the Mumbai police, the Thane jail authorities had conducted a raid inside the cells and seized wads of cash to a total of Rs 25,000, two knives and two sachets of hashish. Gawli is reportedly fond of hashish.

Moreover, Gawli’s men who were kept in various jails from Kalyan to Yerwada have begun converging in Thane jail. "Is it a coincidence that until September 18, there were only 10 men fromthe Gawli gang in Thane jail. Now there are more than 55 of them," wonders an IPS officer of the crime branch.

Following the raid, the crime branch had been taking extra precaution and escorts Gawli all the way to Amravati jail and back even if there is a date after only a gap of three days.

Confirming Gawli’s machinations, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (detection) K L Prasad. "Gawli is getting very short-duration dates which is highly unusual for an MPDA detenue."

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While his wife, Asha Gawli, denies that Gawli’s lawyers are deliberately trying to get dates on short intervals to keep him nearer to his base. However, she admitted that the climate of Amravati does not suit his health. She also decried the police moves of bundling him to Amravati every now and then. Besides the usual thick dossier on Gawli’s criminal activities, the crime branch has now compiled another slim file on Gawli and the court cases against him which includes every minute detail about Gawli’s prosecution in various courts.

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