NEW DELHI, Apr 12:
Four persons, including the two alleged shooters, accused in real estate tycoon Deepak Bhardwaj’s murder case, were today remanded to three days police custody by a Delhi court after police said it needs their custodial interrogation to unearth the conspiracy.
The two alleged shooters Purushottam Rana and Sunil Mann and Amit, the driver of the car in which the shooters had gone to the farm house of 62-year-old Bhardwaj, a local BSP leader, to kill him on March 26, were produced before the court after expiry of their 10-day police custody remand.
Co-accused Pradeep, who had allegedly supplied the arms to Rana and Mann, was arrested yesterday and was produced before the court today.
Metropolitan Magistrate Prashant Sharma remanded the four accused to police custody till April 15 saying that the matter is under investigation.
“Admittedly, the matter is pending investigation. The places from where co-accused persons have to be traced out are out of Delhi. I have gone through the case diaries and disclosure statements of the accused persons. The said record is signed by me.
“Keeping in mind the record placed before me, the accused persons who are present before me are sent to police custody for three days till April 15,” the magistrate said.
Seeking extension of police custody of Rana, Mann and Amit, prosecutor Kamal Akhtar said that Rana in his disclosure statement has said that he can got alleged godman Pratibhanand, who is still absconding, from Delhi, Mathura and Haridwar.
Regarding Mann and Amit, the prosecutor said they were part of the conspiracy and Amit had gone to meet co-accused Pradeep after the commission of the crime.
The prosecutor said Pradeep had provided the country-made
pistol to Rana and Mann and he had also recced the farm house at Rajokri in south Delhi where the crime took place.
Police said Pradeep had procured the weapons from one Manoj, who is a resident of Uttarakhand, and he could lead the investigators to the arms’ supplier.
The investigating officer said that Rana, Mann went to meet Swami Pratibhanand before the crime and the conspiracy was hatched at Amit’s residence.
The prosecutor also told the court that these three accused had got recovered the weapons used in the crime from a canal and police has conducted raids at various places in Nasik, Mumbai and Ahmed Nagar for arresting Pratibhanand.
He also said that more raids are to be conducted at Solan in Himachal Pradesh and Rishikesh in Uttarakhand in order to arrest the godman.
He also said that all the accused persons have to be confronted for unearthing the entire conspiracy.
Opposing the police custody remand, advocate J P Singh, who appeared for Rana, Mann and Amit, said that the police is trying to trace out Pratibhanand but Mann and Amit are nowhere linked with Swami.
Advocate Kapil Dhaka, who appeared for Pradeep, claimed that his client was in illegal detention since March 28 and the four days police custody remand was not justifiable.
According to the sources, the police has got issued non-bailable warrants against Pratibhanand.
Mann and Rana were arrested on April 1 amid high drama when they had come to Patiala House Court to surrender. (PTI)
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