CBI sleuths seize Lonavla police station computers

A team of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) sleuths swooped down on Lonavla police station on Monday evening and seized a laptop and the hard disk of a computer. A CBI official said that the seized items were crucial evidence in the investigation of RTI activist and whistleblower Satish Shetty's murder case.

Shetty, a Talegaon-based activist who had unearthed several land scams in the district through the Right To Information (RTI) Act, was murdered on January 13, 2010 near his home.

A CBI officer who was present during the raid said, "On Monday two CBI officials led by PI Swati Desle had gone to Lonavla police station around 6 pm and seized the hard disk from a computer and a laptop, which was being used by the police station staff.

He added that Shetty had lodged complaints against IRB and Sable Waghire Company in Lonavala police station and to investigate whether there was any link between those complaints and Shetty murder case, the CBI team went there and seized the laptop and hard disks.

"The then police station in-charge, Balraj Lanjile was investigating the cases, but was transferred to the Economic Offence Wing in the rural police department," he said.

Another CBI official said that they have gathered some vital information from the laptop and hard disk, which will help in the investigation of the case.u00a0Earlier, CBI had stormed into the local crime branch (LCB) office of the Pune Rural Police and seized hard disks from the computer.

After Shetty's murder, the rural police had arrested Advocate Vijay Dabhade, Shaym Dabhade, Parshuram Tipanna, Pramod Waghmode, Navnath Shelar and Dongrya Rathod and later, Dabhade was released on bail.

The remand reports and other important documents were created and stored on the computers in the rural police office.u00a0The investigation was transferred to CBI after Shetty's brother Sandip Shetty filed an intervention application, seeking CID or CBI inquiry.u00a0