Two men sentenced to 5 years RI in extortion case, acquitted of MCOCA charges

A special court in Thane district sentenced two persons to five years of rigorous imprisonment in an extortion case after acquitting them of charges under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act MCOCA. Additional special judge A N Sirsikar sentenced the accused, Ashok Shankar Kharat 55 and Durgaprasad Pichchiya Rao 39, to five years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 1,000 each.

A special court in Thane district sentenced two persons to five years of rigorous imprisonment in an extortion case after acquitting them of charges under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). Additional special judge A N Sirsikar sentenced the accused, Ashok Shankar Kharat (55) and Durgaprasad Pichchiya Rao (39), to five years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 1,000 each. The court acquitted another accused involved in the case.

A copy of the order dated February 29 was made available on Monday.

Special public prosecutor Sanjay B More informed the court that the accused had demanded Rs 25 lakh from a Navi Mumbai-based builder in January 2010 and threatened him by claiming affiliation with a notorious gang.

The Navi Mumbai police apprehended the accused in February 2010 while they were accepting Rs 2.5 lakh.

The court observed that the prosecution had failed to substantiate the involvement of an organised crime syndicate in the case.

It noted that the accused did not have antecedents, and the offence appeared to stem from a personal dispute rather than organised crime activities.

The court upheld extortion charges and acquitted the accused of charges under the MCOCA.