Pravin's case to be committed to sessions court

Mumbai, July 17: A local court today fixed July 24 as the date for committal of trial to a sessions court in Pravin Mahajan's case, who is accused of killing his elder brother and former BJP general secretary Pramod Mahajan.

A copy of the chargesheet filed by the police on July 14 under sections 302 (murder) and 449 (trespass in a house with an intention to kill someone) of the IPC, was handed over to Pravin before Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate B L Waghmare today. The magistrate expressed the court's inability to conduct the trial and, hence, committed the trial to the sessions court.

Meanwhile, Pravin once again complained of ill-health and told the court that besides suffering from diabetes, blood pressure and fever, he was being given treatement for malarial disease, without any blood test.

Defence lawyer Nandkumar Rajurkar alleged before the court that after the June seven blood test, Pravin has not undergone any tests and reports of the test conducted have not been shown to him. The defence also requested the court to direct the jail authorities to treat the accused at any other State-run hospital, due to unavailability of proper treatment at Arthur road jail.

In reply, the court directed the Arthur road jail superintendent to provide all medical facilities to the accused and also furnish reports of the medical tests conducted by the jail doctors.

Later, while talking to reporters, Mr Rajurkar expressed his inability to brief about the contents of the chargesheet, as it was taken over by Pravin's brother-in-law. However, the court directed the police to furnish another copy of the chargesheet to the defence lawyer by this evening, he added.

UNI