Mumbai, Oct 8: The Bombay High Court on Thursday expressed surprise over the lifestyle, including the use of high-end cars, of former Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Vaze, who is currently in judicial custody in the 2021 Antilia bomb-scare case and Mansukh Hiran murder case, a lawyer said.

A bench of Justices Girish Kulkarni and Neela Gokhale also flagged Vaze’s extended stay of about 100 days in a room booked at the Oberoi hotel, asking how an officer of the rank of Assistant Police Inspector could afford to drive high-end vehicles.

The High Court said that these aspects of Vaze’s financial situation, conduct, and professional record are relevant to assessing the charges against him.

The bench was hearing an appeal filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), challenging a September 29 order of a special court granting bail to Vaze.

The High Court last week granted interim stay on the bail order, resulting in Vaze remaining in judicial custody.

Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, representing the NIA, shared with the High Court witness statements that mentioned that Vaze used expensive and luxury vehicles while he was an Assistant Police Inspector.

During the hearing, Anil Singh read out a witness statement, which said that Vaze travelled in a black Mercedes and asked those accompanying him to turn off their mobile phones.

The court then asked whether the Mercedes belonged to Vaze and whether there was any evidence that the vehicle was registered in his name.

After the NIA responded in the affirmative, the court asked whether it was normal for an Assistant Police Inspector to own such an expensive car.

The court remarked, “Since we have not yet seen an Assistant Police Inspector driving a Mercedes…”

The court also sought information from the NIA regarding Vaze’s other vehicles and reviewed a list of five vehicles he used while serving as Assistant Police Inspector.

This list included a white BMW, a black Volvo, a white Mercedes, a white Toyota Land Cruiser Prado, and another black Mercedes.

Seeing the number of vehicles, the court said, “He (Sachin Vaze) owns five vehicles…”

The court noted that, according to statements submitted by the NIA, Vaze travelled in a high-end Mercedes to the Mumbai Police Commissioner’s office and the Maharashtra Chief Minister’s residence, ‘Varsha’.

NIA’s lawyer Anil Singh also told the court that Vaze had stayed at a seven-star hotel in South Mumbai for around 100 days.

The court asked how a police officer, earning a monthly salary of around Rs 90,000 at the time, could afford such an expensive lifestyle.

The NIA said that these vehicles owned and used by Vaze are being linked to alleged extortion in the case.

Vaze is an accused in the Antilia bomb scare case, where an SUV laden with explosives was recovered near industrialist Mukesh Ambani’s Mumbai residence in February 2021.

The High Court asked the NIA the reasons for opposing Vaze’s bail that was granted with stringent conditions, partly due to the fact that he has been in custody for more than five years now.

The NIA lawyer said Vaze could tamper with witnesses and destroy evidence.

“He (Vaze) was earlier charged in a fake encounter case. He was a police officer who had the duty of protecting the public. But he himself indulged in criminal activities where he not just tried to instil fear and terror but he murdered a person,” Singh said.

New Delhi, Oct 8: A couple of Delhi Police personnel who allegedly came under attack from the Congress workers and supporters during the INDIA bloc stir in the national capital a day before, narrated the ordeal that they underwent while trying to contain the surging crowd.

A couple of Delhi Police Constables, including women personnel spoke to media, recounting the physical attack inflicted on them while the Congress-led INDIA bloc protested against the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

They claimed that they were kicked and punched by the mob while doing their duty.

Deependra Sandhu, a Delhi Police Constable, said that he was assaulted while trying to control the unruly protesters on Wednesday.

“They (protesters) deliberately targeted us because we were informing everyone that Section 163 was in force in the area and that they could not protest here. Suddenly, they went behind us and pulled us from behind. They then pushed us to the ground and started kicking and punching us. We somehow managed to protect ourselves and get away,” he recalled.

The Constable also told media that he saw the attacker running from the protest site after assaulting him from the behind.

“The man who pulled me down from behind and kicked me was wearing white clothes,” he said.

Head Constable Bhupendra Ahlawat had a similar tale to share. He, too, was attacked allegedly by Congress workers while he was in police uniform.

He called it a planned attack as the attacker was allegedly given a “cover and escape route” by the protesting party workers.

“I am the one who was kicked. They intentionally and deliberately pulled me from behind by my waist and made me fall. When I turned around to see who it was and whether I recognised him or not, as soon as I made eye contact with him, the Congress workers hid him. They took him to the green area in the middle of the roundabout and deliberately made him leave after asking him and hiding him,” he said.

Seema, a woman Constable said that she was assaulted during the INDIA bloc protest on Tuesday.

“It is our duty to follow the instructions given by our officers. At that time, we do not pay attention to whether we are getting injured. I realised only later that I had been injured. This happened at Akashvani Bhavan, when we were detaining the legislators.”

“They were the MLAs who were sitting with Priyanka Gandhi,” she added.

According to reports, the Delhi Police have lodged multiple FIRs over alleged misbehaviour, manhandling and assault of its personnel by the Opposition workers, while they adhered to security protocols and strived to maintain order amid difficult circumstances.

Ahmedabad, Oct 8: The Ahmedabad City Crime Branch has arrested a man allegedly involved in the killing of Punjabi social media influencer and make-up artist Mad Sandhu in Amritsar on October 3, identifying him as the shooter who also arranged the motorcycle used in the attack, police said on Thursday.

The accused has been identified as Parminder Prasad alias Parminder Kaka. According to Ahmedabad Crime Branch DCP, Ajit Rajian, Parminder carried out the firing that killed Sandhu and arranged the motorcycle used by the assailants.

“His role is that of the shooter. He did the firing and also arranged the bike,” Rajian told media. The arrest followed an input from Amritsar Police and coordination between the Punjab and Gujarat police teams.

The accused was traced to Ahmedabad, where the Crime Branch took him into custody as part of the investigation into the murder.

“A case has been registered as FIR No. 186/2026 under Section 103 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita at Cantonment Police Station in Amritsar. Further legal proceedings are underway,” he confirmed.

Sandhu, whose real name was Madhusudan Sandhu, was shot on October 3 by two motorcycle-borne assailants near a car wash centre on Loharka Road in Amritsar.

Police had said the attackers opened fire before fleeing from the spot. Sandhu was taken to a private hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

The killing had initially led police to examine several possible angles. Investigators collected CCTV footage from the area and examined Sandhu’s movements and digital records to identify the attackers.

Amritsar Police had reportedly detained two persons while probing a possible contract-killing angle.

Sandhu, 29, had a substantial following on social media and was known for his work as a make-up artist and for speaking about make-up artistry and gender-related issues on podcasts and digital platforms.

He had more than two lakh followers on Instagram and had also appeared in the Punjabi film ‘Oye Bhole Oye’.

The case also drew attention after social-media posts allegedly linked to foreign-based gangsters claimed responsibility for the killing.

However, Punjab Police had earlier said the authenticity of such posts had not been established. Investigators have also been examining possible links to the network of gangster Goldy Dhillon.

The latest arrest is expected to help investigators establish the sequence of events leading to the killing, identify other persons involved and determine the circumstances surrounding the alleged contract killing.