Days after Assistant Inspector Sachin Vaze was removed from Mumbai Police Crime Branch in the aftermath of the Mansukh Hiren death case, his interim anticipatory bail plea has now been rejected by a Sessions Court in Thane. The case revolves around the bomb threat to industrialist Mukesh Ambani and the subsequent death of Mansukh Hiren, who was the owner of the explosives-laden car and had reported it missing.
While hearing his bail plea on Friday, the court refused to provide any relief and adjourned the hearing in the case till March 19. The Court will now hear his bail plea on March 19th.
Since the anticipatory bail has been rejected for Sachin Vaze and now the court will hear his bail plea on 19th, it stands to reason that Sachin Vaze can be arrested in the Mansukh Hiren case in the meantime by ATS.
As per reports, Vaze was transferred from the Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) of the Crime Branch to the Citizen Facilitation Centre (CFC). It must be mentioned that CFC is responsible for police clearances for passports and licences. His transfer from Crime Branch took place following accusations of his involvement in the death of her husband (Mansukh Hiren).
After the case was transferred to the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), they have interrogated and recorded the statement of Sachin Vaze. Interestingly, the Assistant Inspector was suspended for 16 years, starting in 2004, for the custodial death of one Khwaja Yunus. After being reinstated in service, he was handed cases ranging from TRP scam to fake followers’ scam.
Antilia bomb scare and death of Mansukh Hiren
On February 25, a Scorpio car with 20 gelatin sticks was found parked near Antilia, the multi-storey residence of Mukesh Ambani in Mumbai. The police had claimed that a Telegram channel was created on February 26 and the message claiming the responsibility of the attack was posted through the channel on February 27. On the following day, Jaish Ul Hind allegedly used another channel on Telegram. The terror group claimed that they did not post the previous message and they had no connection to the SUV parked outside Ambani’s house.
The police believe that the second message was sent from outside the country, but the location could not be pinned. The message that was sent from Tihar Jail demanded money from Ambanis. A link for payment through cryptocurrency was also mentioned in the message. However, the link was not functioning, according to Mumbai Police. The message claimed that it was only a trailer, and “the big picture was yet to come.” It further added, “the brother who placed the SUV near the Ambani house has reached the safe house.”
The case had gotten murkier and murkier after the link of Mumbai Police officer Sachin Vaze with the owner of the Scorpio car surfaced. Vaze was reportedly in touch with Mansukh Hiren, the owner of the car, since June 2020. Hiren was subsequently found dead in the Kalwa creek, which only served to deepen the mystery surrounding the attack against Mukesh Ambani. The investigative agencies probing the matter are looking into all possible angles, including the role of Indian Mujahideen in the attack against the billionaire businessman.
