New Delhi: Underworld don Dawood Ibrahim`s alleged aide Khalil Ahmed, accused of attempting to extort money from a trader here, was on Monday acquitted by the Delhi High Court of the charges under stringent anti-organized crime law MCOCA.
Upholding the trial court`s order absolving Khalil of the charges for allegedly running an organised crime syndicate under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crimes Act (MCOCA), Justice Suresh Kait dismissed an appeal filed by the state against the judgement of the Special Judge.
The court rejected the prosecution`s argument that Khalil, who was arrested by Delhi police in 2009 at South Delhi here on the complaint of a city-based businessman, was wanted in 34 other criminal cases for offences of extortion, murder, dacoity, kidnapping, assault, intimidation and attempt to murder and hence MCOCA should be invoked against him.
Police also said the accused kept changing his associates in each case.
"The offence under the MCOCA must comprise continuing unlawful activity relating to organized crime undertaken by an individual singly or jointly, either as a member of the organized crime syndicate or on behalf of such syndicate by use of coercive or other unlawful means with the objective of gaining pecuniary benefits or gaining undue economic or other advantage for himself or for any other person or for promoting insurgency," Justice Kait said.
"In the case in hand, to satisfy the condition of Section 2(d) of the Act, the prosecution has relied upon a list of 34 criminal cases which are filed against the respondent during the period 1985 to 2009. These 34 cases include present one.
The prosecution failed to ascertain whether the offences committed therein was related to organized crime or not," the court said.
PTI
