A trial court here on Tuesday acquitted gangster Raja Acharya in the 1994 College Square firing case here in which a local businessman, Dinesh Thakur, was critically wounded receiving two gunshot injuries.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Ms Geeta Mohanty pronouncing her judgement on the day exonerated Acharya of attempt to murder and extortion charges framed against him by local Malgodown police.lack of evidence and prevaricated statements of prosecution witnesses were the grounds on which the Magistrate relied upon to absolve Acharya of the charges. Besides being framed under section 307 and section 387 of IPC, Acharya was also booked under section 27 of Arms Act.
The prosecution case was that Acharya had allegedly demanded extortion money from Thakur, who was running a popular snacks outlet at the College Square. When Thakur refused to comply, Acharya had allegedly barged into his outlet on July 4, 1994 and fired at Thakur.
With two bullet injuries in his abdomen and left thigh, Thakur was rushed to nearby SCB Medical College Hospital, where he recuperated and discharged after treatment. But Acharya, who went underground soon after the incident, was arrested by the city police almost two weeks after.
