J Dey murder case verdict: Gangster Chhota Rajan, seven others sentenced to life imprisonment; journalists Jigna Vora and Joseph Paulson acquitted

MUMBAI: Nearly seven years after journalist Jyotirmoy Dey was gunned down in suburban Mumbai, the special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act Court (MCOCA) sentenced gangster Rajan Nikalje aka Chhota Rajan to life imprisonment along with all other seven convicts in the case.

Seven other convicts in the case has also been given the same sentence.

The prosecution had demanded "maximum possible punishment" since the crime was an attack on the fourth estate. However, the court sentenced the convicts to life imprisonment.

Accused scribes Jigna Vora and Joseph Paulson have been acquitted in the case.

Nine accused convicted: Rohit Thangappan alias Satish Kaliya, Anil Waghmode, Abhijeet Shinde, Nilesh Shendge, Arun Dhake, Mangesh Agawane, Sachin Gaikwad, Deepak Sisodia, Vinod Asrani (dead).  

Dey, a veteran crime journalist who had extensively covered Mumbai underworld for over two decades, was shot dead in broad daylight, by gangster Chhota Rajan's men, in June 2011. Rajan is believed to have killed Dey as he suspected that the journalist was working for his arch-rival Dawood Ibrahim, while another journalist Jigna Vora allegedly instigated Rajan against Dey owing to professional rivalry.

Dey, 56, the Editor (Investigations) of Midday eveninger, was shot down near his home in Mumbai's Powai by assailants who were riding their bikes. The police cracked the case within a fortnight and arrested seven sharpshooters of the Chhota Rajan gang. However, the case was later handed over to the CBI after Rajan was deported from Indonesia's Bali to India in 2015, and subsequently made an accused in the case.

J Dey had written articles in the months preceding his murder that showed the Chhota Rajan in poor light due to which the gangster got him eliminated, the prosecution had said in the court. Of the 155 witnesses examined by the prosecution 8 had turned hostile. The prosecution also failed to pinpoint journalist Jigna Vora's role in the case leading to her acquittal.

One of the high-profile accused, Vinod Asrani aka Vinod Chembur, who was allegedly the main co-conspirator and financier of the entire operation, died during the course of the investigation. Dey had met Vinod at a bar in the east Mumbai suburb of Chembur just days ahead of his murder. The meeting was allegedly held for Rajan aide to identify Dey. However, the witnesses couldn't recognize Rajan aide in the court.

Rajan had said that he was implicated in the case and also said that the voice that boasted to journalists that Rajan got the veteran crime journalist killed, was not his. However, the prosecution had countered it with strong evidences leading to his conviction.

The investigations were initially conducted by police but were taken over by the Crime Branch due to its ramifications.

There was a sensational twist to the case when police arrested Vora, then Deputy Bureau Chief of The Asian Age, Mumbai, on November 25, 2011, besides 10 others. It emerged during the probe that Vora was allegedly in regular contact with Chhota Rajan and provoked him to eliminate Dey.

In June 2015, the Special MCOCA court framed charges against the remaining 10 accused, including Vora.

The accused are Rohit Thangappan Joseph alias Satish Kalya, 28; Abhijeet Kasharam Shinde, 27; Arun Janardhan Dake, 27; Sachin Suresh Gaikwad, 35; Anil Bhanudas Waghmode, 35; Nilesh Narayan Shendge alias Bablu, 34; Mangesh Damodar Agawane, 25 (all who conducted recce and/or were shooters); Jigna Vora; weapon supplier Deepak Sisodia, 28, of Dehradun; Joseph Paulson, 43; Vinod Chembur (since deceased).

After Chhota Rajan's arrest, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took over the Dey murder probe and made him an accused in a supplementary chargesheet.

As much as Rs 500,000 was paid for the contract killing, including Rs 200,000 as advance.

According to Special Public Prosecutor Pradip Gharat, three accused had got recorded in the court their confessional statements on their roles in the crime. A total of 155 witnesses were examined during the trial.

"Chhota Rajan's deposition was recorded via video conferencing from Tihar jail. He is not likely to be brought here for the verdict," he added.

Dey had authored two books: "Khallas: An A to Z Guide to the Underworld", and "Zero Dial: The Dangerous World of Informers", and was penning his third book, "Chindi: Rags to Riches".

He had reportedly portrayed the mafia don as 'Chindi' (petty) in his upcoming book, which apparently irked Chhota Rajan.

(With inputs from IANS)