Mumbai special court denies bail to Mohammed Rafiq Sardar Chaudhari, citing his “active role” and intentional involvement in organised crime. The accused had recce footage of Salman Khan’s residence and aided the gang in the April 2024 shooting incident.
Mumbai: A special court in Mumbai has rejected the bail plea of Mohammed Rafiq Sardar Chaudhari, an alleged member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, in connection with the shooting incident at Bollywood actor Salman Khan’s residence last year.
The court observed that Chaudhari played an “active role” in the offence and was “intentionally involved” in organised crime activities.
The bail plea was heard on Monday by Judge Mahesh Jadhav, who is handling cases under the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA).
According to police, Chaudhari had visited Salman Khan’s Galaxy Apartments in Bandra just two days before the shooting.
During this visit, he had also recorded a video of the property and sent it to Anmol Bishnoi, the younger brother of gang leader Lawrence Bishnoi.
Chaudhari requested bail on multiple grounds, including an unexplained seven-hour delay in filing the FIR, illegal arrest, lack of crucial evidence, absence of mens rea (criminal intent), and his clean prior criminal record, arguing that the MCOCA should not apply to him.
However, Special Public Prosecutor Mahesh Mule opposed the bail application, stating that the accused was involved in aiding and abetting the crime. After hearing both sides, the court rejected the defence arguments.
The judge highlighted that Chaudhari’s confession, although later retracted, was supported by other evidence, including phone call records and a forensic report that confirmed four videos of Salman Khan’s house were found on his mobile phone.
The court noted,
“The applicant has played an active role in the crime. He was involved intentionally in the organised crime activities and acquired monetary gain through his nephew.”
Further, the court emphasized that Chaudhari’s confession and the evidence on record prima facie show that he was part of the conspiracy. Being a gang member, he aided and abetted the commission of the crime.
The judge ruled that Chaudhari did not meet the twin conditions for bail under the MCOCA, which require that there be no reasonable grounds to believe the accused is guilty and that the accused is not likely to commit another offence while on bail. As a result, the court concluded that the accused was not entitled to bail.
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The shooting at Salman Khan’s Galaxy Apartments occurred on the morning of April 14, 2024, when two bike-borne men, Vicky Gupta and Sagar Pal, carried out the attack.
Currently, Chaudhari, Gupta, Pal, Sonukumar Bishnoi, and Harpal Singh are in judicial custody, while one accused, Anujkumar Thapan, died by suicide during police custody. In the chargesheet, the police have named the Bishnoi brothers as wanted accused in the case.
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