After the Crime Branch, even the ATS has given Eknath Khadse a clean chit and will likely arrest the hacker for allegedly fabricating evidence against the former minister
There has been a complete reversal in the fortunes of Eknath Khadse and the hacker who claimed he had evidence that the former revenue minister was in touch with wanted gangster Dawood Ibrahim. The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has given a clean chit to Khadse and, instead, will likely arrest the hacker, Manish Bhangale.
Also Read: Dawood Ibrahim link: Hacker claims email hacked, evidence against Eknath Khadse stolen
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Eknath Khadse arrives during the monsoon session of state legislature. Pic/PTI
Bhangale has been in the limelight ever since he claimed that he had hacked the website of Pakistan Telecommunications Company Limited (PTCL) and found records of calls between Khadse and Dawood.
Senior counsel Nitin Pradhan, appearing for the ATS in the Bombay High Court, said, “Our preliminary inquiry is over, there is no terrorist link as claimed by the hacker. Also, there were no calls between former minister Khadse and Dawood Ibrahim.”
Pradhan also assured the court that in the next two days, the Crime Branch and Cyber Cell will register an FIR in the matter and further action will be taken.
“This case need not be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), as claimed by the petitioner Bhangale. We will register the FIR in two days and complete investigations soon,” Pradhan told the bench comprising Justice Naresh Patil and Justice Prakash Deu Naik.
Read Story: Ethical hacker who revealed Khadse's links with Dawood ready for probe
Accordingly, Justice Patil dismissed Bhangale’s petition and observed, “We need to have some confidence in state agencies as well. Every time we can’t say transfer to CBI.” He told Bhangale that if he feels that the Crime Branch is also not doing a proper job, he can approach the high court again.
Outside court, ATS counsel Pradhan was asked whether Bhangale would be arrested for forging evidence against Khadse, he replied, “We have found that some documents showed by Bhangale, like the PTCL bills, were actually forged. Our preliminary investigation shows the same and he will most likely be booked accordingly. When we called him for questioning, Bhangale never appeared, claiming that he had already recorded a statement with the Crime Branch, which had also given a clean chit to Khadse.”
Hacker hacked
mid-day had reported that Manish Bhangale recently lodged a complaint with Thane police, claiming that he lost all evidence against Khadse as his e-mail had been hacked. However, some cops claimed that it was a ploy to avoid being arrested for making false claims about ex-minister Khadse.
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