HOW RAVI PUJARI’S EXTORTION RACKET STRUCK FEAR
Arrested gangster Ravi Pujari is named in 52 FIRs in Mumbai in various crimes involving robbery, extortion, and attempt to murder. A look at the most talked-about cases linked to him:
JULY 4, 2005 Target: Majeed Memon, lawyer Two persons on a motorbike shot at leading criminal lawyer, Majeed Memon, outside his residence. Pujari called media houses to announce his involvement. The calls were traced to Monaco. Both father and son escaped unhurt.
June 15, 2006 Target: Mahesh Bhatt, filmmaker Two gunmen fired at filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt’s office. Bhatt was not in the office when the attack took place. Pujari claimed responsibility for the attack, claiming Bhatt needed to be eliminated for allegedly collaborating with underworld gangsters, Dawood Ibrahim and Chhota Shakeel. Bhatt denied the claim. June 21, 2009 Target: Ashok Mohanani, builder Three gunmen shot at the security guard of a designer boutique that belonged to Ashok Mohanani of Ekta Builders. Ravi Pujari had allegedly tried to extort money from Mohnani and when he did not succeed, had threatened to kill him.
February 25, 2011 Target: Ashok Mohanani, builder Ashok Mohanani was targeted again, but this time in Nashik. Two men entered the Ekta Builders’ office in
Nashik and began firing at staff members. A receptionist and a cashier were grievously hurt. Mumbai Crime Branch arrested three people for the crime, which was allegedly masterminded by Pujari. A fourth person involved in the murderous operation was killed in a bike accident earlier. March 14, 2011 Target: Sudhakar Shetty, builder Pujari targeted another real estate developer, Sudhakar Shetty of Sahana Group. Pujari’s men attacked a project site where Shetty was collaborating with the then state excise minister, Ganesh Naik. Two employees of Sahana Group — site supervisor Yogesh Khule and site engineer Samrat Devarsia — died in the attack.
August 23, 2014
Target: Karim Morani, filmmaker Filmmaker Karim Morani (Chennai Express), who had complained to Mumbai Police about extortion threats from Pujari, was shot at outside his bungalow in Juhu. Three people affiliated to the gangster came on a bike and fired four rounds. Morani escaped unhurt. The case did not garner much media attention then, due to which, Pujari claimed, he had conspired to kill another filmmaker in Khar, Mumbai.
November 15, 2014 Targets: Mahesh Bhatt, Mukesh Bhatt, Rahul Bhatt The Mumbai Police intercepted seven
men acting suspiciously outside Bhatt’s residence. In total, 11 people were caught between November 15 and November 21. Mumbai Police filed a case against 14 of Pujari’s gang members. August 17, 2015
Target: Arijit Singh, singer Hindi film playback singer Arijit Singh alerted Mumbai Police that he had received a call from Pujari for a private performance. Mumbai Police said Singh did not complain about Pujari, nor was the latter threatening him. However, Pujari expected the singer to perform for free at an event the gangster was organising.
March 5, 2018 Target: Remo D’Souza, choreographer The Anti-Extortion Cell of Mumbai Crime branch arrested film producer Satyendra Tyagi for taking Pujari’s help to threaten choreographer and film director Remo D’Souza. Tyagi allegedly had a long-standing dispute with D’Souza over an unsettled amount of Rs 5 crore for a 2014 movie called The Death of Amar. According to Mumbai police, D’Souza and his wife received several phone calls demanding ~5 crore for Tyagi and ~50 lakh for Pujari.