LAHORIA MURDER CASE

Despite SC no, builder gets anticipatory bail

S Ahmed Ali TNN

Mumbai: The Indore high court granted anticipatory bail to builder Suresh Bij -lani, prime accused in the Navi Mumbai builder Sunil Lahoria murder case. Bijlani, dodging the police for three months, walked into the police headquarters at Crawford Market and handed over his transit anticipatory bail order issued by the court on Monday.
    The Supreme Court had last week rejected Bijlani’s bail application. In May, the sessions court and Bombay high court had rejected his anticipatory bail too. Sources said Bijlani, armed with the Indore high court’s bail order by Justice P K Jaiswal walked into the crime branch unit I office and handed it over to senior inspector Ramesh Mahale.
    The police said it could be part of a gameplan as the Indore order comes a week after the crime branch filed a chargesheet.
    Lahoria’s son Sunny is likely to move the SC against the Indore court’s order on Tuesday.
    In his bail plea, Bijlani claimed to be a native of Indore in Madhya Pradesh and said his father was old and ailing and had to be hospitalized in Mumbai and hence he needed interim bail for his father’s treatment.
    “S P Agarwal, an accused in the case, had also sought bail only seven days back, and we are wondering how the Indore court granted relief to Bijlani,’’ said an officer.
    Bijlani had filed for anticipatory bail in the SC last month, but his lawyers withdrew it at the last moment fearing its rejection.
    A few days later, Bijlani filed two petitions stating that his lawyers withdrew his earlier application without his consent. The court rejected it.
    Lahoria was shot dead on February 16 outside his Navi Mumbai office, following which shooters Venkatesh Shettiar (35) and Wajid Kureshi (28) and former encounter specialists Emmanuel Amolik were arrested.
    Shettiar’s call details showed he was in touch with Amolik who was in touch with Bijlani. Anurag Garg was the common architect of all accused builders—Bijlani, Bhupesh Gupta, S P Agarwal, Sumit Bacchewar and Vijay Gagra—who crossed swords with Lahoria over projects. Bacchewar and Gupta have been arrested.