Mumbai The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has moved an application before the Esplanade metropolitan magistrate court to keep in abeyance the trial in ₹15 crore extortion case registered against former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh, his close associate and builder Sanjay Punamiya, police inspectors Nandkumar Gopale, Asha Korke and businessman Sunil Jain.
A chargesheet is filed against Gopale, Korke, Jain and Punamiya by the Crime Investigation Department (CID) in the case. Singh has not been chargesheeted in the matter due to orders passed by the apex court, which eventually handed over all cases against the senior IPS officer to the CBI. After filing chargesheet, trial had started in the case before the Esplanade court.
“In August mid-week, the CBI has moved an application seeking to keep the trial in the case in abeyance after which additional chief metropolitan magistrate M S Bade has sought say of the other concerned over the plea,” said a police officer who is aware of the matter.
The court is likely to pass an order on CBI’s plea on August 24.
The Maharashtra police had registered five First Information Reports (FIRs) against Param Bir Singh. In four of the five cases, Singh and others have been charged for extortion. Apart from Singh, the state police had also booked deputy commissioners of police Parag Manere, Akbar Pathan and inspectors Asha Korke, Nandkumar Gopale, Pradeep Sharma, Rajkumar Kothmire and Sachin Vaze in various cases.
By the time the SC transferred the cases to the CBI, the CID had filed a chargesheet in the ₹15 crore extortion case that was registered by Marine Drive police station. Apart from Singh, the police had also named Gopale, Korke, Pathan, Punamiya, Jain, Sanjay Patil and Shrikant Shinde as accused in the case.
“The CBI has started recording statements of people and also collecting documents in the extortion cases. They are re-investigating the cases and a possibility of stumbling upon new evidence cannot be ruled out,” said a police officer who investigated the case.
The complainant, Shyamsunder Agrawal, 57, claimed that he had done several real estate projects in Borivali, Bhayandar and Gorai in partnership with Punamiya, but due to complications, conflicts and profit-sharing disputes, the two ended their partnership in 2011. He alleged that Punamiya had 18 false cases registered against him in Mumbai and Thane.
In 2016, Agrawal was arrested and while he was in jail, Punamiya and Jain allegedly demanded ₹20 crore from Agrawal’s nephew by claiming that Singh was Punamiya’s friend and if the money were not paid, they would add sections of Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA) against Agrawal using Singh’s clout.
This meeting was allegedly held at Singh’s official residence in Kopari in Thane East and a DCP-rank officer, who is believed to be close to Singh, was also present in the meeting. He further said that the accused collected ₹9 crore from Agrawal and his nephew, according to the remand application.