Sagar Dhaba where additional collector Yeshwant Sonawane was burnt alive

Dhabas are hubs for pilferage, adulteration

Mateen Hafeez TNN

Manmad: The killing of Malegaon additional collector Yeshwant Sonawane near Manmad has exposed the ugly business of the oil mafia and its operations at dhabas along highways. Police sources said the dhabas are hubs for oil pilferage on the Nashik-Dhule stretch.

Sonawane was burnt alive by the oil mafia after he objected to pilferage on January 25. “Most policemen, revenue officials and bureaucrats know the dhabas are hubs for pilferage and adulteration. However, no one is willing to take action since the authorities are bribed for their inaction,” a senior police officer who is part of the Sonawane case probe said.

Dhabas at Nandgaon, Chandvad, Malegaon, Satana, Dhule, Erandole, Pachora and Igatpuri are the main centres for pilferage. “Everyone knows about the activities but no one is bothered to take action,” said a dhaba owner.

“Most families eat in restaurants but truck and bus drivers, along with cleaners, prefer dhabas, which have huge parking space. You can park for more than three hours, which is enough for the mafia to operate,” a source said. Some dhaba owners also get a “cut” (commission), he added.

“Dhabas are the most convenient places for pilferage. If someone stops an oil tanker on the highway for pilferage, there is a risk of being spotted by passersby. The oil mafia therefore prefers dhabas for such activities,” a source said.

“The dhabas have a lot of space in the front and at the back too. Several truck and tanker owners park at the back so that they cannot be spotted from the highway,’’ sources said. However, it is not certain if the dhaba owners know about the activities and ignore them.

After filling oil, when a tanker leaves a depot, a key is kept at the filling station and another is in the possession of the authorities at the receiving end. However, those who possess the keys are reportedly hand-in-glove with the oil mafia. “The mafia prepares duplicate keys to open containers. They also bring new seals, which are inside the container. Once a seal is broken to pilfer oil, a new one is put to avoid suspicion,” the sources said.

2 lakh litres seized in Kurla alone

S Ahmed Ali TNN

Mumbai: The city crime branch made at least six raids against the oil mafia in Mumbai over the past two days, with around 1,200 drums, containing 2 lakh litres of adulterated petrol, diesel, kerosene and furnace oil, seized in Kurla alone. The seizure was worth Rs 65 lakh. Though police have arrested Abdul Gaffar Hasan, 55, the kingpin of the oil mafia in the city, around a dozen others who worked under him are wanted. Sohrab Hussain and Aminbhai are among the major racketeers who have gone underground, said investigators.

The raids are part of the statewide drive against the oil mafia following the murder of additional collector Yeshwant Sonawane on Tuesday. Home minister R R Patil has come down heavily on the oil mafia and asked the police to crack down on it.

The crime branch raided Hasan’s godowns in Panama Compound at Chunnabhatti in Kurla and seized 800 drums of adulterated oil. On Friday morning, the crime branch made more raids in the same locality and seized 435 drums of adulterated oil from two godowns belonging to Sohrab and Aminbhai. “As the workers fled and locked the doors, we had no option but to officially break the locks,” said joint commissioner of police (crime) Himanshu Roy. Adulterated furnace oil, black oil, kerosene, diesel, caustic soda, artificial colours, carbon oil and empty drums have been seized.

Hasan has been booked under IPC Section 420 for cheating, the Essential Commodities Act and other laws. He will be produced in court on Saturday. Police have launched a manhunt for the others.

Meanwhile, the Vakola police also carried out raids. They raided a godown in Shastri Nagar in Kalina and seized 20,000 litres of adulterated oil belonging to one Sahebrao Shaikh.

The modus operandi was to collect oil from industrial waste or fuel thrown from vehicles and ships. “The mafia processed the adulterated oil and upgraded it. Depending on the availability of resources, the accused made either diesel, furnace oil or grease and sold it at cheap rates. Autos, taxis, cheap trucks and small entrepreneurs bought it. If such oil is used, it can cause major damage or freeze engines,” said Roy.

Patil has asked Roy to intensify the crackdown on the oil mafia in the city. Patil said, “When Roy told me that oil was brought in through shipping companies, I directed police to take stern action against customs officials, as without inside support smuggling is not possible,” the home minister said. “I have instructed the police to seal petrol pumps that indulge in buying and selling smuggled diesel or oil.”

On the Sonawane case, Patil said, “RPI leader Ramdas Athavale has demanded a CBI probe. But I think the case should be given to the CBI only if the Sonawane family wants it.”
-- With inputs from Sanjeev Shivadekar

Onus on DCPs, SPs
S tate home minister R R Patil has said that if any oil mafias are found active, then the concerned deputy commissioner of police in urban areas or superintendent of police in rural areas will be suspended. “The aim is to fix responsibility on a senior person,” he said. He also urged civilians to come forward and inform about any illegal or suspicious activity in their areas. “The name of the informer will not be disclosed. Also, the informer will be rewarded,” Patil said. Meanwhile, state chief secretary Ratnakar Gaikwad has assured “full” security to officials conducting raids. tnn

SLIPPERY BUSINESS: Police officials are seen during raids at illegal fuel depots in Vakola in the city on Friday

Shinde alleged bribe in bid to fix Sonawane

Prafulla Marpakwar TNN

Mumbai: Tuesday was not the first time that Popat Shinde, the main accused in the murder of additional collector (Nashik) Yeshwant Sonawane, had targeted the government official. Shinde had complained to the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) five months ago that Sonawane was seeking a bribe from him. However, Shinde had to withdraw the complaint after two attempts to trap Sonawane failed.

Sonawane was burnt alive on Tuesday by the oil mafia in Panewadi, near Manmad. Shinde, who is in JJ Hospital with 75% burns, is the main accused in the case, while 10 others have also been arrested.

As additional collector based in Malegaon, Sonawane was in charge of the food and civil supplies wing of the Nashik region and a common target of the oil mafia in the Manmad-Dhule belt. A top bureaucrat said that Shinde’s tanker had been seized by the flying squad of the Nashik food and civil supplies department in May 2010 after it was determined that Shinde was involved in the theft of petrol, diesel and kerosene.

An offence under the Essential Commodities Act was registered against Shinde in Manmad. Under the act, all appeals are heard by the additional collector, in this case Sonawane.

Case closed for the ACB

After hearing Shinde’s plea for his tanker to be released, Sonawane said it would be possible only if he submitted a bank guarantee. “Sonawane’s observations were clear. If Shinde was keen on securing his tanker, he should have submitted a bank guarantee, which is a routine practice,” said the bureaucrat.

Shinde then approached the Nashik ACB in the last week of August 2010. He complained that Sonawane was harassing him and demanding a bribe for the release of the tanker. The ACB, along with witnesses, then tried to trap Sonawane twice. Officers visited Sonawane’s office on August 30, but he was not there. Another attempt was made the next day, but again the additional collector was not present in office. “ACB officials visited the additional collector’s office for verification on two occasions, but since he was not there no confirmation could be made on whether Shinde’s complaint was true or false,” said the bureaucrat.

Shinde went to the ACB on September 2 and submitted an application to unconditionally withdraw his complaint. “For the ACB, since Shinde withdrew his complaint, the case stands closed,” the bureaucrat said. A few days before Shinde submitted his application to withdraw his complaint, his tanker had been released in a routine matter after he completed the formalities prescribed by the food and civil supplies department, including getting the bank guarantee.

Yeshwant Sonawane

The Times of India, January 29, 2011