Ulhasanagar firing incident: Cops arrest fourth accused in case

Vicky Ganatra (left) with other BJP leaders/ Navneet Barhate

Thane Crime Branch, which is investigating the Ulhasnagar firing incident case that unfolded at Hill Line Police station, has arrested the fourth accused. The police earlier arrested BJP MLA Ganpat Gaikwad and two others of the six booked for the crime.

The police said that the arrested accused was identified as Divyesh alias Vicky Lalit Ganatra (37), a resident of Kalyan. The police said Vicky is one of Ganpat's close aides and that was often spotted with the BJP legislator at various meetings. Photos of Vicky posing with other top leaders of the saffron party were also recovered during the probe.

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Vicky Ganatra (far left) seen with top BJP leaders including Devendra Fadnavis/ Navneet Barhate

On Friday night, when Ganpat Gaikwad shot Mahesh Gaikwad in the cabin of a senior police inspector of Hill Line Police Station, Vicky was present at the spot. "The CCTV footage of the police station that went viral shows Vicky coming in and out of the station. He was relaying information of the situation outside the police station," a police officer told mid-day saying that he would be produced in court today.

The Thane crime branch officials have until now taken into custody four accused including Ganpat, his bodyguard Harshal Kene, Sandeep Sarvankar and Vicky. They are in the meanwhile searching for Gaikwad's son Vibhav and one Nagesh Badekar.

The crime branch sleuths have formed different teams of which some are tasked with the manhunt for absconding accused, others are tasked with evidence gathering and taking statements from the witnesses.