Four acquitted of Navi Mum corporator's murder

THANE: A sessions court on Friday acquitted four men accused of gunning down Navi Mumbai corporator Devidas Chowghule at Airoli in November 2007.
Additional sessions judge A S Waghwase said lack of strong evidence and the prosecution's failure to prove the accused's role were compelling reasons for setting them free of all charges. Devidas, a NCP corporator and cousin of Sena strongman Vijay Choghule, was shot dead outside a temple at Sainathwadi in Airoli despite the presence of an armed police security guard.
The Navi Mumbai police had arrested five persons-Ikhlaq Rahim Shaikh, Zuber alias Banta Bangali, Ramu Ghare and brothers Deepak Patil and Ganesh Patil-in connection with the killing. It was alleged that the Patil brothers had hired two shooters Bangali and Ghare and paid them Rs 10 lakh to eliminate Devidas over a realty dispute in Navi Mumbai. The bullets were fired at point-blank range. The shootout had triggered panic in the area as Chowghule was known as a muscle man and was politically connected. It was feared that there would be reprisals.
Prime accused Deepak Patil, who was reportedly a gangster, was gunned down near Vitawa in Thane allegedly by one-time associates Sujit Sutar and Raja Gavari, who is the Congress corporator from Kalwa. All of them have been acquitted district.
Nearly 15 witnesses testified in the case. But lawyers representing the accused challenged their claims and raised questions about the veracity of ballistics reports.