Mumbai court sentences Chhota Rajan to 8 years imprisonment in attempt to murder case

A Mumbai court on Tuesday sentenced gangster Rajendra Nikhalje alias Chhota Rajan and five others to eight years imprisonment for attempting to murder hotelier BR Shetty in 2012.

Special Judge A T Wankhede also imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh each on the six men, who were earlier in the day convicted in the case.

They were facing charges under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA), besides section 307 (attempt to murder), 120 B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the Arms Act.

Shetty was shot at in Andheri in October 2012 by two motorcycle-borne men, who fired four rounds and fled the spot. The hotelier sustained injuries on his shoulder but he still managed to walk to the nearest police station. He was taken to hospital from there.

In January 2014, Mumbai Police had filed a 1,332-page charge sheet in the case. According to it, the firing was ordered by Rajan as he wanted to settle scores with Shetty.

The charge sheet had said Rajan's aide Satish Thankappan alias Kalia gave the shooting instructions.

Besides Rajan and Kalia, the others sent to jail are Salvan Chellapan, Deepak Upadhyaya, Nityanand Naik and Talvinder Singh alias Sonu.

Rajan was deported to India after being arrested in 2015 from Bali in Indonesia. Since then, he is lodged in Tihar jail in Delhi.

Last year, Rajan was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of journalist J Dey in 2011.