Mumbai Court Sentences Gangster Chhota Rajan To Life Imprisonment For Murder Of Hotelier Jaya Shetty In 2001, Fines Rs 16 Lakh

Special Judge AM Patil under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA) passed the judgment. A detailed copy of the judgment is awaited.

The court found Rajan, who appeared via video conferencing from Tihar Jail, New Delhi, guilty of multiple charges:

1. Under Sections 302 (murder) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC, Rajan was sentenced to life imprisonment and fined Rs. 1,00,000. Failure to pay the fine will result in an additional one-year simple imprisonment.

2. Under Sections 3(1)(i), 3(2), and 3(4) of the MCOCA, Rajan received life sentences with fines of Rs. 5,00,000 each. Defaulting on these fines will also lead to an extra year of simple imprisonment for each count.

All four life sentences will run concurrently, and the court imposed a total fine of Rs. 16,00,000 on Rajan. He was acquitted of charges under Sections 3, 25, and 27 of the Arms Act.

It was the prosecution's case that victim Jaya Shetty, owner of the Golden Crown hotel in South Mumbai, faced extortion threats from Rajan's gang. He had police protection, which was withdrawn two months before his murder. Shetty was shot dead on May 4, 2001, outside his office by two alleged gang members, after Shetty purportedly refused to pay the demanded amount of Rs. 50,000.

Three co-accused—Ajay Mohite, Pramod Dhonde, and Rahul Pansare—have been previously convicted in connection with the murder.

This life sentence is Rajan's second; he is already serving time for the 2011 murder of journalist Jyotirmoy Dey. Rajan, who was arrested in Bali in October 2015 and deported to India, faces charges in 71 cases in Maharashtra. The Maharashtra government has transferred these cases to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Case no. – SPL CASE MCOC/0100006/2019

Case Title – CBI v. Rajendra Sadashiv Nikalje @ Chhota Rajan