Ex-cop Pradeep Sharma, who killed 112 gangsters, convicted in ‘fake encounter’ case
PTC News Desk: Bombay High Court convicted former Mumbai Police ‘encounter specialist’ Pradeep Rameshwar Sharma in a 2006 'fake encounter' case.
The ex-cop has been sentenced to life imprisonment for killing Ramnarayan Gupta, also known as Lakhan Bhaiyya, an alleged member of the Chhota Rajan gang, in a fake encounter at Versova's Nana Nani Park in November of 2006.
The division bench of justices Revati Mohite Dere and Gauri Godse overturned his acquittal and upheld the convictions and life sentences of 13 other accused in the case.
On July 12, 2013, the Mumbai Sessions Court acquitted Sharma, the primary accused, while convicting other police personnel, including another ‘encounter specialist’ Pradeep Suryavanshi Suryavanshi and a few 'private' individuals, and sentencing them to life imprisonment.
The 62-year-old ex-cop is part of the famed 1983 batch of police officers that included Vijay Salaskar, Praful Bhosle, Ravindra Angre, and Vinayak Saude. These cops were known for cracking down on the Mumbai underworld, which was commanded by Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar, Chhota Rajan, Arun Gawli, Amar Naik, and others. Also, Sharma is said to have killed 112 gangsters in 25 years of service.
Sharma, no stranger to controversies, was dismissed in August 2008 for alleged ties to the underworld. He was reinstated in May 2009, following rulings from the Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal.
Pradeep Sharma was arrested in 2010 for allegedly staging a fake encounter of Rajan gang member Ramnarayan Gupta, alias Lakhan Bhaiya, in November 2006. He was acquitted in 2013 after spending four years in prison.
In 2017, he was reinstated and named head of Thane Police's Anti-Extortion Unit. In July 2019, he resigned to join the unified Shiv Sena and ran in the assembly elections from Nalasopara in Mumbai, but lost.
He was again arrested in 2021 by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) after his name came up in the Antilia explosives scare and Mansukh Hiran murder investigation.
Lok Sabha Election 2024: Voting to start from April 19; results on June 4
Which states will vote in how many phases? Find out here!
Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Check out phases, constituencies and comprehensive information on Punjab polls
BJP Lok Sabha candidates list: PM Modi to contest from Varanasi
-
