Delhi Court Denies Bail To EX-AAP MLA Naresh Balyan In Extortion Case
A Delhi court on Tuesday dismissed the bail application of former AAP MLA Naresh Balyan in a case lodged under the stringent MCOCA Act.
Special Judge Dig Vijay Singh dismissed the application, saying there was no sufficient ground to grant the relief.
This was the second bail application moved by Balyan in the case.
He was produced before the court through video conferencing from jail.
The Delhi Police on May 1 chargesheeted Balyan in the case.
The supplementary chargesheet was filed against four accused persons -- Sahil alias Poli, Vijay alias Kalu, Jyoti Prakash alias Baba, and Balyan -- under stringent sections of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
All accused persons were arrested in the case related to an organised crime syndicate allegedly run by gangster Kapil Sangwan alias Nandu.
Balyan was arrested in the case on December 4 last year, whereas a court granted him bail in an extortion case.
The court on January 15 denied him bail in the case.
Delhi Police had argued the investigation was at a crucial stage in the case, and if granted bail, the accused would hamper the probe.
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Jayashree alias Kalyani Umesh Deshpande, 56, whose name has figured in Pune police records for years as an infamous sex racketeer, has once again been booked under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). This time, however, the action taken against her is in connection with the 'ganja (marijuana)' business she was allegedly operating from the garment shop Kalyani Collection, located near her residence Balaji Nivas, on the Pashan-Sus Road. Acting on a tip-off, a team from the Anti-Narcotics Cell of the Pimpri Chinchwad police's crime branch raided Balaji Nivas and Kalyani Collection on May 24 this year. The search was led by Santosh Patil, Senior Inspector, and Vikram Gaikwad, Assistant Inspector. The police arrested Kalyani's husband Umesh Deshpande, 56, her niece Aishwarya Deshpande alias Aishwarya Ranawade, 22, and Aishwarya's husband Abhishekh Ranawade, 32, from the spot. 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Following a rigorous search operation, the police arrested her from the Rajanagaram area in Andhra Pradesh on June 15. Since then, she has been behind bars, but the investigators are yet to trace the people who allegedly supplied the marijuana. 'We suspect that she started selling marijuana alongside running the sex racket to make more money,' Senior Inspector Patil said. The Pimpri Chinchwad police said Kalyani was running an organised criminal gang with Umesh, Aishwarya, and Abhishek. Considering the alleged involvement of the gang in six offences, including five crimes pertaining to sex racketeering in the past, the police in July invoked MCOCA against all four accused in the NDPS Act case registered at Bavdhan police station, as per a statement issued on August 2. However, the police said Kalyani has a long criminal record. They believe she was a part of the sex trade in Pune since the 1990s, but her name only made it to Pune City police records in 2000 when she was named an accused in around 25 criminal cases, officers added. As per police records, Kalyani operated an escort agency named 'Venus Escorts' from her bungalow in Pune. She was first booked under MCOCA after her name cropped up in connection with the murder of a sex worker at a hotel on the outskirts of Pune in December 2005. An FIR of murder was lodged against her at Haveli police station, but she was discharged under MCOCA and later acquitted in the case. The police said her residence on Sus Road was infamous for sex trade and crimes. In December 2007, her close aide in the prostitution business, Anil Dhole, was murdered at this bungalow. According to police sources, even after Dhole's death, Kalyani's activities grew, with some of her customers being high-profile clients. 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In April 2012, ahead of the birth anniversary of Dr B R Ambedkar, Kalyani had put up banners in some parts of the city to show her interest in social work. The banners carried her photograph alongside Ambedkar's image. However, in 2016, the Pune City police arrested Kalyani after links emerged with a sex racket busted at an apartment in Bhusari Colony, Kothrud. The police had allegedly found two women from Uzbekistan engaged in prostitution at the apartment. Kalyani and her aides – Pradip Gavali and Ravi Tapase – were arrested in this case under sections of the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act (PITA). The same year, in October, the police invoked MCOCA against Kalyani in this case. In December 2022, a special court in Pune convicted and sentenced her to seven years of rigorous imprisonment under PITA and MCOCA charges. Officers said that after completing her jail term, she became active in the prostitution business again. Last year, she was arrested in two sex racket cases in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. Officers said she soon came out on bail before allegedly getting involved in the marijuana trade. Chandan Haygunde is an assistant editor with The Indian Express with 15 + years of experience in covering issues related to Crime, Courts, National Security and Human Rights. He has been associated with The Indian Express since 2007. Chandan has done investigative reporting on incidents of terrorism, left wing extremism, espionage cases, wildlife crimes, narcotics racket, cyber crimes and sensational murder cases in Pune and other parts of Maharashtra. While working on the 'Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) Fellowship on Tigers, Tiger Habitats and Conservation' in 2012, he reported extensively on the illegal activities in the Sahyadri Tiger Reserve in Maharashtra. 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