Sachin Waze, the suspended Mumbai Police officer who was arrested by the NIA in connection with his involvement in the explosives-laden vehicle found near Mukesh Ambani’s house, has filed a habeas corpus petition in the Bombay High Court citing his arrest to be ‘illegal’.
Waze through his brother Sudharm has moved a petition on Monday, under Article 266, and sought for his immediate release. In the petition, Waze’s brother mentioned that there were several lapses in Waze’s arrest along with the violation of Criminal Procedure Code provisions.
“He was not served with a 41(A) notice under the CrPC, a copy of the FIR wasn’t given, neither were the reasons for arresting him explained,” the petition claims, while seeking a direction to the NIA to produce Waze before the HC and prove that due procedure was followed during the arrest.
Further, the petition alleges that Waze (49) was made a “scapegoat” by “certain political powers”.
“The haste in which the Petitioner’s brother was arrested clearly shows some ulterior motives and huge political influence and interference with the sole intent to use the Petitioner’s brother as a scapegoat to further certain political agendas of some big interested parties,” read the petition filed through his lawyer Sunny Punamiya.
Further, the petition said the allegations made by Hiran’s wife, blaming Waze for her husband’s death, were false.
After the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad registered an FIR against him, the “entire media fraternity and society started targeting” him as they wanted a “scapegoat to pin this entire conspiracy on”, Waze claimed.
The NIA, on the other hand, denied before a lower court that he had been detained illegally before the arrest.
Sachin Vaze, who was questioned for 12 hours on Saturday in connection with the Ambani bomb scare, was taken into arrest by NIA late in the night. The case was taken over by the NIA after the mysterious death of Thane-based businessman Mansukh Hiran who had claimed that the vehicle had been stolen from his possession.
The petition is yet to be listed for hearing.
