Delhi Court acquits 3 men accused of MCOCA after noting invalid sanction for registration of FIR

New Delhi [India], October 22 : A Delhi Court on Monday acquitted three men accused of organized crime, stating that the case registered under the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA) was based on an invalid proposal and sanction and that the necessary conditions to invoke MCOCA were not fulfilled.
Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Pulastya Pramachala of Karkardooma Court acquitted Ishwar alias Nareshwar alias Kanchi, Sukhmeet Singh alias Nonu, and Gaurav Sharma alias Golu of all charges levelled against them.
An FIR under Section 3 of MCOCA was registered at Police Station Bhajanpura in 2016, leading to the arrest of four individuals allegedly running an organized crime syndicate and acquiring property through proceeds of crime.
The court noted that organized crime is central to the offences under sections 3(2) to 3(5) of the Act; without evidence of organized crime, these charges could not stand. "Therefore, I find that this case is based on a wrong foundation and notion of law. For this reason, the prosecution's evidence falls short of being incriminating," ASJ Pramachala stated in the judgment dated October 21.
Following a proposal from the SHO of Bhajanpura, the competent authority granted a sanction under Section 23(1) of MCOCA, leading to the FIR registration on May 27, 2016.
Accused Majid Khan, alias Kamal, died on July 17, 2020, before charges could be framed. On February 18, 2022, charges were framed against the three remaining accused for offences punishable under Sections 3(1)(i), 3(2), 3(3), 3(4), and 3(5) of MCOCA, to which they pleaded not guilty and claimed trial.