Reshma, the wife of slain gangster Farid Tanasha, deposed before a special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court on Friday and identified two suspects as the shooters who had entered Tanasha’s home and killed him nearly seven years ago.
Tanasha was shot dead at his home in Chembur on June 2, 2010. According to the prosecution, he was killed at the behest of builder Dattatrya Bhakare, who had been angered by Tanasha’s interference in one of his projects.
Reshma, an eyewitness to the murder, was the 52nd witness in the case. The prosecution had earlier thought of dropping her name from the list of witnesses as she could not be traced.
Reshma said in court that on May 30, 2010, three days before Farid was murdered, the couple had gone to Ajmer Sharif dargah with their daughter. She added that Farid fell ill once they returned home.
“On June 2, 2010, I, Farid and my daughter were in our bedroom. Farid was on the bed and we were chatting. Suddenly two boys entered the room and opened fire on my husband. After doing so, they ran away,” Reshma told the court.
She was asked about the police’s identification parade after the two suspects – Mohd Sakib Sahanawaz Alam Khan and Randhir Ashok Sinh, alias Nikhil – were arrested.
She confirmed that the police and local tahsildar had organised the identification parade at Taloja jail on August 4, 2010. She confirmed that she had identified the suspects as the men who killed her husband, and when asked to identify the assailants in court, she pointed at Khan and Sinh.
Reshma also told the court that Farid worked for gangster Chhota Rajan and had been in jail from 2005 to 2008. She claimed he had been helping members of a housing society built by Bhakare who had approached him. She also said that he rarely left his house because of the threat to his life.
The court was adjourned after her examination, which lasted almost an hour. Reshma will now be cross-examined by the defence.
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