Chargesheet against Salem in Diwani murder case

Mumbai, Apr 10: The prosecution will file chargesheet on April 15 against extradited gangster Abu Salem for his alleged involvement in the conspiracy to murder Bollywood actor Manisha Koirala's private secretary Ajit Diwani in 2001.

Special Public Prosecutor Jimmy Madan today sought time to file the chargesheet as Commissioner of Police A N Roy has not yet signed it.

Accepting the request, MCOCA (Maharashtra Control for Organised Crime Act) Judge Abhay Thipsay granted time and adjourned the matter till April 15, directing the prosecution to file the chargesheet that day.

Besides Salem, there are six others accused in the case -- Deepak Singh alias Dipu singh, Upendra Singh, Nizammuddin Khan, Akhalesh Kumar Singh, Ayub Patel and Sahebrao Giri -- against whom trial had been going on for some time. But with Salem's alleged complicity in the murder emerging later, trial is on hold.

Meanwhile, reports also said, Deepak, who had been taken to Uttar Pradesh last month for a probe in some other case, has absconded from Varanasi jail.

All the accused are booked under sections 120(b), 449, 302, 342, 506(II), 465, 468 and 471 of Indian Penal Code (IPC), sections 3, 7, 25(1-A)(1-B) 27 and 35 of Arms Act and sections 3 (1)(ii), 3(2), 3(3) and 3(4) of MCOCA.

Salem was extradited from Portugal in November, last year to be tried in eight criminal cases in India, including the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts.

He is presently facing trial in three cases in Mumbai-- the serial bomb blasts, builder Pradeep Jain's murder case of 1995 and the Ajit Diwani murder case.

UNI