Pravin Mahajan found guilty of murder, trespass

Source: www.ibnlive.com

Pravin Mahajan has been found guilty by a Sessions Court in Mumbai, almost two years after he was held for shooting his elder brother and senior BJP leader Pramod Mahajan. The Court found Pravin Mahajan guilty of murder and criminal trespassing under Section 449.

Argument on the quantum of punishment is still on and the Court is likely to give its ruling on Tuesday.

The Court said the act was "cold-blooded, pre-planned murder". It added that the motive was beyond monetary benefits.

On April 22, 2006, Pramod Mahajan was shot thrice, allegedly by his younger brother Pravin, who then went to the Worli police station and surrendered. Pramod Mahajan passed away 12 days later.

A total of 35 witnesses were examined in the trial, including Pravin Mahajan's wife Sarangi and over 600 pages of depositions were recorded by the court. Pramod Mahajan's widow Rekha and their servant Mahesh Wankhede were the main witnesses in the case.

One of the pillars of the prosecution's case is the controversial SMS sent to Pravin Mahajan's cell phone from Pramod Mahajan's phone which read Ab yachana nahi ran hoga, jivan vijay ke sath ya maran hoga (There will be no requests, there will be war, either victory or death).

The defense had maintained from the beginning that the gunshots were fired in a scuffle but the case took a U-turn in October this year, when Pravin Mahajan flatly denied having shot his brother.

He admitted, however, that he was present at Pramod Mahajan's residence when the incident took place, that he later went to the police station and surrendered, and that he owned a working gun and had bought ammunition for it.