Congress corporator, three others booked for extortion

Four persons, including a Congress corporator, were booked for allegedly threatening a city-based builder for extortion, police said on Friday.

According to complaint filed by builder RG Pataskar, he received threats to shell out an extortion sum of Rs 3 crore to Congress corporator Narayan Pawar and three others regarding property dealing of a plot, Kasarwadavali Police Station officer BS Tambe said. A case has been registered against four persons -- Siddhimian Shaikh, Ramrao Gurala, Pradip Burke, and corporator Narayan Pawar -- in this connection under IPC Sections 384 (extortion), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery), 420 (cheating) rw 34, 471 (using as genuine a forged document).

Quoting the complaint, the officer said 74-year-old Pataskar had bought a plot from one Siddhimian Shaikh for development in 1997. But Shaikh through forgery, sold a portion of the plot to one 

Ramrao Gurala and further from that plot, a piece (of land) was sold to one Pradip Burke.

The trio -- Shaikh, Gurala and Burke -- forged documents and showed themselves as buyers of the plot from Pataskar, the complaint stated.

Later, the trio submitted an application with Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) against Pataskar. In the meanwhile, Congress corporator Narayan Pawar demanded Rs 3 crores from the builder in order to get back his plot. Succumbing to the demand, Pataskar paid the first instalment of Rs 3 lakh, the officer said, adding, the builder was mentally harassed and allegedly threatened by the corporator to pay the remaining amount.

Pataskar said even after completion of his project (building), he was not issued the OC (occupation certificate) for the building.