Pune Gangland: Acquittal in Yerawada Jail Murder Case: Gangster Sharad Mohol and Alok Bhalerao Cleared of Charges
By India Crime Correspondent
PUNE, 27 June 2019
In a significant legal development, gangster Sharad Mohol and his associate Alok Bhalerao were acquitted by a sessions court on Wednesday.
The duo had been accused of the murder of Indian Mujahideen operative Mohammed Qateel Siddique within the confines of Yerawada Central Jail in 2012.
Siddique had been implicated in relation to the 2010 German Bakery bomb blast case.
High-Profile Case Background
The victim, Mohammed Qateel Siddique, had been incarcerated in the high-security section of Yerawada jail.
On June 8, 2012, he was allegedly strangled to death by fellow inmates Sharad Mohol and Alok Bhalerao. Subsequently, an FIR was registered against them at Yerawada police station.
Benefit of Doubt
Public Prosecutor Vilas Ghogare Patil indicated that Additional Sessions Judge SH Gwalani extended the benefit of doubt to the accused.
Throughout the trial, six key witnesses, including inmates present at the time, turned uncooperative, leading to a weakening of the prosecution’s case.
Patil explained, “The court rejected Mohol’s extrajudicial confession, which had been made in front of the jailer. The circumstantial evidence was deemed unreliable.”
Circumstantial Discrepancies
The prosecution asserted that Mohol and Bhalerao employed a pyjama string to execute the strangulation of Siddique. However, the prosecution was unable to produce the purported string as evidence.
“Numerous inconsistencies emerged in the case, and even fellow detainees failed to corroborate the prosecution’s narrative as no one had directly witnessed the alleged incident,” Patil added.
Defence Standpoint
The defence counsel highlighted that the prosecution’s case heavily relied on the extrajudicial statement, but lacked substantial corroboration.
The court’s examination involved scrutinizing 16 witnesses linked to the case.
Investigation Context
The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) had been investigating Siddique’s alleged involvement in a bomb placement attempt near the Shrimant Dagdusheth Ganpati temple on February 13, 2010.
Defence’s Assertion
Advocate Prakash Suryavanshi, who represented Mohol and Bhalerao, emphasized, “Due to the absence of corroborating evidence and circumstantial support for the prosecution’s theory, the court acquitted both Mohol and Bhalerao.”
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