New Delhi: A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Court on Friday acquitted gangster Rajendra Sadashiv Nikalje alias Chhota Rajan in a murder conspiracy case due to lack of evidence.

The case pertains to the high-profile murder conspiracy of Dr. Datta Samant, a trade union leader of Mumbai who was shot dead in 1997. Chhota Rajan was accused of masterminding the murder. Special CBI judge AM Patil acquitted Rajan of all charges in the absence of concrete evidence.

four shooters shot

On January 16, 1997, Dr. Samant was shot dead in Mumbai by four unidentified men at Padmavati Road on his way to Ghatkopar. It is alleged that four bike-borne assailants stopped Dr. Samant’s jeep and fired 17 rounds of bullets at him. He was immediately taken to the hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead.

Following the murder, a case was registered against four unidentified assailants at the Sakinaka police station on the basis of a complaint by Dr. Samant’s driver Bhimrao Sonkamble.

Rajan was caught in Bali

Gangster Rajan was arrested in October 2015 in Bali, Indonesia. Later, the CBI took over all the cases registered against him and prosecuted Rajan for the murder of Dr. Samant.

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