Hindustan Times
Pics: Rons Bantwal

Mumbai, Jul 24: Dawood Ibrahim’s sister Haseena Parkar, facing arrest in an extortion case, was granted bail on a personal bond of Rs 25,000 on Thursday.

However, the court directed her to report to the Anti-Extortion Cell (AEC) between noon and 4 pm every day for the next 30 days. She has to be at the office at other times too when required by the AEC and she cannot leave Greater Mumbai.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate V.K. Sharma was severe on the police too. “If the facts of the first information are considered to be the gospel truth, the alleged act committed by the accused (Haseena) does not fit the definition of extortion,” he observed.

When the investigating officer, Assistant Police Inspector B.V. Parab, explained that Haseena had kept for herself part of the money advanced by a developer for a slum rehabilitation scheme that never took off, the judge asked: “When is it considered extortion? While accepting money or giving it?” At most, he observed, a case of cheating could be made out.

The judge also questioned why the police had waited until April 21, 2007, to register an FIR against Haseena when real estate agent Vinod Avlani had lodged the complaint on December 19, 2006. “The law says you have to register the case immediately, and not sit on it for four months,” observed the judge.

The magistrate also why no public prosecutor had been appointed after the regular prosecutor went on leave three weeks ago. “How do you expect me to function?” asked the judge. It was the third hearing after Haseena surfaced after being on the run for 32 days.

The judge also released Haseena associates Krishna Shukla and Sandeep Shukla on bail. She and her associates have been accused by Avlani of keeping part of the Rs 1 crore paid by developer Jayesh Shah to finance a slum rehab scheme at Wadala.