The henchman of infamous gangster Chhota Rajan, wanted for murder, kidnapping, and illegal possession of weapons, has been arrested by the Mumbai Police, officials said.

The accused had been on the run for the last 32 years. According to the police, the arrested accused who has been absconding for decades has been identified as Raju Vikanya alias Vilas Balram Pawar.

Pawar was arrested after Mumbai Police received information about his whereabouts. The police said that he was spotted in the Chembur area of Mumbai on Thursday. As soon as the police received the information, they went to Chembur and arrested him.

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Many cases of murder, ransom kidnapping, and illegal possession of weapons are registered against the accused in different police stations in Mumbai. He was to be presented in a sessions court in the metropolitan.

Earlier in October, The Bombay High Court granted bail to gangster Chhota Rajan in the 2001 Jaya Shetty murder casey.

Earlier, he was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for this crime. The divisional bench, led by Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Prithviraj Chavan, set bail at ₹1 lakh.

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In 2023, a special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court acquitted Rajan of orchestrating the high-profile murder of renowned Mumbai trade union leader Dr Datta Samant, who was shot dead in 1997. However, Chhota Rajan is not likely to be released from jail anytime soon, as he is facing trial in several other cases in various cities.