BHUBANESWAR: A local court on Saturday convicted gangster Sandip Acharya and his associate Akshaya Behera for kidnapping Arun Mantri, a city-based music studio employee, three years ago. The Assistant Sessions Judge-cum-Chief Judicial Magistrate Lokanath Mohapatra handed the duo a four-year jail term after finding them guilty on three counts.Both Sandip (alias Raja) and Akshaya (alias Chagala) are, currently, behind the bars for life after being convicted last year in the murder of Judo coach Biranchi Das in April 2008.Arun was kidnapped on the night of April 9, about a week before Das was gunned down by Raja and Chagala at the Judo Centre near the State Museum.Judge Mohapatra found the duo guilty under Sections 365, 506 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 27 of the Arms Act.Prime accused Raja was sentenced to four years rigorous imprisonment (RI) and a penalty of Rs 2,000 under Section 365 (kidnapping to confine), one year under Section 506 (criminal intimidation) and three years RI and ` 2,000 penalty under Section 27, Arms Act. All the sentences will run concurrently. Chagala too was handed out an identical punishment.Arun is the brother of Bidusmita Mantri, an album artiste and friend of Leslie Tripathy, another such artiste. After kidnapping him from his OUAT Colony residence, the duo had taken him to a slum in Gadhiakhal under Baragarh police limits. Once there, Raja terrorised Arun, used the latter’s mobile phone to call up Leslie and Bidusmita. The next day in the early hours, Arun was released. He went on to lodge an FIR with Khandagiri Police.When chargesheet was submitted in the case, police slapped Sections 307, 363, 365, 507 and 34 of IPC along with 25/27, Arms Act, against the two. The trial court framed charges against them under Section 307 and 365 of IPC and 27 of Arms Act.While pronouncing the judgment, the court found them guilty under Sections 365 of IPC and 27, Arms Act while absence of material evidence to substantiate Section 307 (attempt to murder) led to conviction under Section 506 of IPC, a lesser offence.The court began trial in August 2009 and hearing concluded in May this year. The prosecution presented 17 witnesses, including the two IOs SK Patel and KC Mishra, while the defence produced four. As material evidence, the ballistic report of the gun from which Raja had fired at Mantri on that night, calls from the phones, medical report and bike used for kidnapping went in favour of the prosecution.While the defence counsels said the verdict will be challenged in a higher court, special prosecutor for the complainant Sidharth Das said increased protection to witnesses by the Government will lead to more convictions. Advocate Pradyumna Patnaik was the Government lawyer in the case.
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