0
Comment(s)
*
* The moderation of comments is automated and not cleared manually by indianexpress.com.
By: Express News Service | Vadodara |
January 26, 2021 1:17:49 am
The move, DCB officials said, is a step in the direction of attaching properties of the gangsters, which can be established as procured by way of crime, as per the provisions of the Act. The Vadodara Detection of Crime Branch (DCB) has sought in writing the details of immovable assets registered in the name of Aslam Shaikh alias Bodiyo and 26 members of his ‘bichoo gang’ across Vadodara city from the registrar for properties and offices associated with the revenue department.
Shaikh and his men have been booked under the Gujarat Control of Terrorism and Organised Crime (GCTOC) Act, the first case to be registered under the new legislation, which aims to crack down on crime syndicates, in Vadodara.
The move, DCB officials said, is a step in the direction of attaching properties of the gangsters, which can be established as procured by way of crime, as per the provisions of the Act. The DCB has so far arrested 15 gang members and begun searches at their residences to ascertain properties that are “proceeds of crime”. Shaikh and his aides, officials said, own several flats, shops, and land parcels, among other immovable assets.
“We have searched the residences of three of Shaikh’s accomplices in the city and have recovered some documents. We are verifying the properties that have been listed until now. It involves the process of verifying the registration of the property in question, make a physical check and many other aspects like co-owners or partnerships, before deciding whether it has been acquired through (proceeds of) crime. Now, we have written to the registrar as well as the city survey office to get a list of properties that could be explicitly registered in the name of the gang members. We have sought this information in writing from the departments concerned. Apart from Shaikh, we have come across properties in the name of his gang members, like Munna Tarbooz,” Deputy Commissioner of Police, DCB, Jaydeepsinh Jadeja said.
Jadeja added police also had “information that Shaikh also has two running construction sites, but need to establish if it is in partnership or any other arrangement”. Under GCTOC Act section 18, the police are empowered to attach properties of accused if it can be established that these are properties have been obtained from the proceeds of crime.
“Once we have a list of the properties and verify it, the crime branch will write to the state government seeking permission to attach the properties,” Jadeja said.