Sena man shot at in Dombivli

MUMBAI, May 21: Dombivli Shiv Sena Vibhag Pramukh and builder Ramesh Mhatre 36 was shot at by three unidentified assailants at Shastri Nag...

MUMBAI, May 21: Dombivli Shiv Sena Vibhag Pramukh and builder Ramesh Mhatre 36 was shot at by three unidentified assailants at Shastri Nagar this morning. With a bullet lodged near his spinal cord, Mhatre is recuperating at Shriram Hospital, where doctors say he is out of danger now.

His wife Gulab, a Sena corporator in the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation, says her husband was stepping out of their building when three men accosted him and opened fire. quot;I heard him screaming and ran out. Then, he collapsed,quot; she told Express Newsline.

As news spread, corporators and leaders of the Agri community, to which Mhatre belongs, thronged to the hospital. Some of them linked the attempt to the desertion of Sena leader Ganesh Naik, who has rallied the Agri community around him following his sacking from the state Cabinet and the victory of his Nagari Vikas Agadhi in Wednesday8217;s Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation elections.

Suggesting that the attempt was the handiwork of the Sena itself, one of themsaid: quot;With support for Naik pouring in from all the civic bodies in the area, the Sena must have thought a killing would act as a deterrent.quot;

However, Thane Police Commissioner O P Bali denied this, pointing out that Mhatre is a history-sheeter with a load of cases pending against him. quot;The cases, which date back to 1980, relate to murder, assault, rioting, criminal trespass and extortion. We have information linking him to the Suresh Manchekar gang as well,quot; he told Express Newsline.

quot;Also, before passing out, Mhatre identified one of his assailants as Deepak Meghnani 26,quot; Bali added.

Police have recovered seven .32 bullets from the site and have registered an offence under Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code. They are waiting for Mhatre to regain consciousness to facilitate the investigation. He said eye-witnesses told the police that three men accosted Mhatre when Meghnani pretended to shake his hand. Mhatre too raised his hand, but spying a revolver in it, he tried to flee. quot;That8217;s why hewas hit in the back,quot; Bali explains.

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On April 14, builder Pappu Aggarwal was shot dead by the same gang but the police chief said there was no deterioration in law and order in Zone III of the Thane Commissionerate. Asked what the police were doing to check the Manchekar gang, he said, quot;The common man is not affected. These are only instances of inter-gang rivalry.quot; Referring to the quot;code of ethics of the underworldquot; he said, quot;They never touch outsiders.quot;

quot;Police are setting up special squads to deal with gangsters,quot; he added.