5 days Ago
Surat: The Surat detection of crime branch (DCB) is likely to seek custody of Prakash Chand Pandey, alias Bunty Pandey , for the 2004 kidnapping and murder of diamond businessman Rajesh Bhatte , a non-resident Indian. The Valsad unit of Gujarat CID (crime) currently have custody of Pandey, in connection with the 2004 case for the kidnapping and murder of Abuzar Kadri, the son of a Vapi businessman. Pandey was allegedly a member of the Chhota Rajan gang and was wanted in 40 cases of kidnapping, murder, extortion and other serious offences, before he was incarcerated in Almora jail for a 14-year sentence.
"We have sought custody of Pandey, who was booked by Vapi police in the Abuzar case. In 2004, Abuzar Kadri was kidnapped, and Pandey and his gang demanded a Rs 5 crore ransom. Abuzar's body was later found in Maharashtra.
"After being brought here from Almora jail, the authorities handed Pandey over to Valsad CID (crime) on March 23. "We produced him in court and were granted his custody till March 29 in the Vapi case. He was brought to the Surat CID (crime) office for formalities to be completed after his voice spectrography test was carried out in Gandhinagar," a source in the Surat zone CID told TOI.
Pandey was also allegedly involved in the sensational kidnapping and murder of Rajesh Bhatte. A Surat crime branch source told TOI: "Pandey is also wanted for the Rajesh Bhatte murder of 2004. Bhatte, a diamond businessman, had settled in the US for about 25 years and would come to Surat to buy diamonds and jewellery.
"On March 17, 2004, Bhatte came to Surat to buy some jewellery and stayed in a Mahidharpura hotel. On March 22, he was kidnapped by five people and a ransom was demanded from his wife in the US. "His brother, Dilip Bhatte, filed a complaint with Mahidharpura police on March 23.
This investigation was later handed over to Surat crime branch. The day the complaint was filed, Bhatte's body was found at Chaklasi town in Kheda district." "Pandey used to run his own gang before 1993.
After the Mumbai bomb blasts, he joined the Chhota Rajan gang. He reportedly went to Pakistan with two other gang members to kill Dawood Ibrahim," the Surat crime branch source said. Pandey was controversially given diksha by the Nath Sampraday and Juna Akhada while he was in jail.
Stay updated with the latest city news , Air Quality Index (AQI), and weather updates for major cities like Delhi , Mumbai , Noida , and Bangalore on Times of India ..
