‘Fake encounter’ case: Retd cop declared hostile

A retired Assistant Commissioner of Police on Thursday was declared hostile after he failed to stick to his statement recorded in the alleged fake encounter case of Chhota Rajan's alleged aide Ramnarayan Gupta alias Lakhan Bhaiya. Anant Patil, who retired in 2007, allegedly deposed before a magistrate that he was called by encounter specialist Pradeep Sharma, an accused in the case, just a day after the incident and was aware of the encounter.

On November 11, 2006, Lakhan Bhaiya was killed in an encounter at Versova. Gupta had 19 cases registered against him, of which 12 were related to murders. As many as 22 persons, including 14 policemen, are facing trial in the case. According to Patil's statement reocrded before the magistrate, on November 12, 2006, Sharma had called him to Versova police station and spoken about the incident. However, when Patil was examined on Thursday by the special public prosecutor Vidya Kasle, he said this had ever happened and his statemnet was taken under duress.

Last week, Kalse had written to the Director General of Police and the city Commissioner of Police that police witnesses were trying to shield the accused in the case. Two officers earlier claimed they had forgotten their statement and did not help the prosecution's case in the court.

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