Verdict in Chhota Rajan's fake passport case on February 10

Chhota Rajan was deported to India after his arrest in Bali in October 2015.

New Delhi, Jan 28: A special court on Saturday reserved its judgement for next month in a fake passport case allegedly involving gangster Chhota Rajan and three others after hearing final arguments on the issue a day before. Special Judge Vinod Kumar fixed the case for pronouncement of verdict observing that the Delhi High Court had recently rejected a plea filed by one of the four accused.

The High Court had stayed the pronouncement of judgement in the case till disposal of the petition pending before it. The trial court said it would hear on February 9 brief final arguments by the defence counsel and pronounce the judgement on February 10.

"On those dates, all the accused persons shall remain present," the court said. Besides Rajan, the court has framed charges and put on trial three retired public servants -- Jayashree Dattatray Rahate, Deepak Natvarlal Shah and Lalitha Lakshmanan. The charges were framed against Rajan for allegedly procuring a fake passport in the name of Mohan Kumar with the help of three government officials, also accused in the case.

Lakshmanan had approached the high court to transfer to Bengaluru her trial in the case but the petition was rejected on January 9 on the ground that a district court here could also hear the matter. During pendency of the plea, the high court had ordered a stay on pronouncement of verdict in the case by trial court.

The four accused have been charged for alleged offences under sections 420 (cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 467(forgery of valuable security or will), 419(cheating by impersonation) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC and section 12 (offences and penalties) of the Passport Act.

Besides this, the court framed charge against the retired public servants under the Prevention of Corruption Act. While Rajan is lodged in Tihar Jail here, the other three accused are out on bail.

Deported after being on the run for 27 years, the 55-year old gangster, once a close aide of fugitive terrorist and mob boss Dawood Ibrahim, was brought to India to face trial in over 70 cases of murder, extortion and drug smuggling in Delhi and Mumbai. Rajan was deported to India after his arrest in Bali in October 2015.

PTI