PUNE: Former Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Kakade was arrested by the Pune police on Wednesday on the charge of aiding the rally of criminal on police record Gajanan alias Gaja Marne, involving more than 300 vehicles with several ‘supporters’ in tow, from Taloja jail in Navi Mumbai to Pune on February 15. The rally was taken out after Marne’s acquittal in a murder case and his subsequent release.
Pune police commissioner Amitabh Gupta told TOI, “We have found his (Kakade’s) role in planning and providing logistical support to the rally and related activity. Hence, he has been arrested.”
Later on Wednesday afternoon, a magisterial court ordered Kakade’s release on bail against a cash surety of Rs25,000 with the condition that he should furnish a personal release surety on Thursday.
Kakade’s lawyer Chinmay Inamdar told TOI, “Barring Section 7 of the Criminal Amendment Act, which is a non-bailable offence, all other charges including criminal conspiracy and criminal intimidation were bailable offences. Even in the case of the non-bailable charge, we brought to the court’s notice that there was no evidence against our client. The court upheld our view.”
Kakade, a real estate developer-turned-politician, was elected to the RS as an independent candidate and he later joined the BJP.
Marne, who is accused of heading one of the active organised criminal gangs in Pune, has seven serious criminal cases in Pune city, Pune rural and Navi Mumbai which are in different stages of trial.
It is the police’s case that the rally with several high-end cars and raucous supporters was part of a ploy to terrorise witnesses and victims in the pending cases and send a signal to the rival gangs about Marne’s clout and influence.
The rally created a furore in Pune as it cocked a snook at law enforcers. For a week later, video clips of the rally with many likes and messages glorifying Marne were circulating on different social media platforms, prompting the Pune police to register an FIR with the Bund Garden police. Kakade’s arrest came as a consequence of this FIR, the police said.
Earlier on Wednesday, the city crime branch officials had summoned Kakade for questioning in connection with the rally. Senior inspector Vinayak Gaikwad and his team arrested Kakade around 11.30am and later in the afternoon produced him before a holiday court seeking his custodial remand for five days.
In his remand report, senior inspector Gaikwad stated that the police wanted to find the link between Kakade and Marne and how the rally was carried out.