Where is witness Baldev Singh?

Singh, who allegedly drove the vehicle in which Sada Pawle and Vijay Tandel were travelling before being shot dead at Ghatkopar on September 26, 1997, disappeared under mysterious circcumstances last evening along with Anand, the latter’s wife Anita and sister Hauasabai.

While Pawle presented himself in court today, Singh remained absent. All four star witnesses have turned hostile, denying they ever witnessed the shooting.

Singh’s counsel Advocate A M Sarogi told the court his client had been missing since Wednesday morning and inquiries with Singh’s family revealed that his client had left for court onWednesday at 10 am. he had turned up only at 2 pm. His family suspects that Singh has been kidnapped, Sarogi said.

Singh and Pawle had been issued bailable warrants after they failed to appear before the commission on Monday. However, Pawle’s warant was cancelled after he deposed before the commission on Wednesday. The judge also rejected Sarogi’s application seeking police protection for Pawle. The advocate said Pawle’s life was under threat, and that he, along with his Anita and Hauasabai, were missing on Wednesday.

Earlier, Sarogi had sought protection for Anita and Hauasabai as well, but withdrew the application as their examination before the commission had already concluded. Sarogi also told the court there was a possibility of the other witnesses being kidnapped, as in the case of Singh.

Questioned by P A Sebastian, counsel for the Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights, Pawle said he was pressurised by all his family members to file the affidavit dated March 2. His family felt that someinjustice may be done to his brother, he stated. Asked what he meant by `injustice’, meaning at the hands of the police, as his brother may have been killed in a fake encounter.