The NIA court said in its order that Sachin Waze wanted to create terror in the minds of the Ambani family.
Mumbai:
A special court, while denying bail to former policeman Sachin Waze, accused in the case of bomb recovery near ‘Antilia’ and murder of businessman Mansukh Hiran, said in its order that he wanted to create terror in the minds of the Ambani family. The court said that the gelatin sticks planted near Ambani’s residence ‘Antilia’ were not connected to any detonator, but it was enough to create panic in the minds of the people.
National Investigation Agency (NIA) special judge AM Patil refused to grant bail to Waze on September 16. The detailed order became available on Friday. Citing the statements of witnesses, the court said that the petitioner and co-accused in the case had tried to create terror in the minds of the Ambani family and hatched a conspiracy to eliminate Mansukh Hiran.
The court said, “It was a planned murder.” Every precaution was taken to escape the clutches of the law. This is not an ordinary allegation under any section of the Indian Penal Code. In such a situation, if the petitioner is released on bail, there is every possibility of him influencing the witnesses.
The court said, “It is quite clear that even though the gelatin sticks were not attached to the detonator, they were sufficient to create panic in the minds of the people.” Here, the effort of the petitioner in this case was to create terror in the minds of a particular section of people and that is the Ambani family.
The court said that when the incident took place in February 2021, the accused was attached to the Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) and was assigned the responsibility as a police officer. The court said that a perusal of the statements of the witnesses revealed that bringing the SUV from Hiran, parking it near ‘Antilia’ with a note and gelatin sticks inside and committing the murder was not part of Waze’s duties.
The court said that in his plea, Waze did not explain how these activities were part of his duty, but he wanted to take advantage of the aspect of obtaining prior sanction to prosecute a government servant. On Waze’s contention of internal rivalry in the police department, the court said that his bail plea did not say anything about “with whom he had rivalry in the police department and how he was implicated in a false case.”
On the basis of delay in the trial, the court said that the chargesheet and electronic evidence were very voluminous and there were 10 accused in the case. According to the NIA, Waze, the then Assistant Police Inspector in the Mumbai Crime Branch, as part of a conspiracy, had parked an SUV outside ‘Antilia’, in which explosive material was kept. An SUV was found near Ambani’s residence on February 25, 2021. Businessman Hiran had said that the vehicle was stolen from him. On March 5, 2021, the dead body of a deer was found in neighboring Thane.
