NIA Targets Pakistan D-Company Member, Seizes Property In 2015 Bharuch Double Murder Case

New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has attached two immovable properties of an alleged Pakistan-based D-Company gang operative in connection with the murders of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members Shirish Bengali and Pragnesh Mistry in 2015. A special court had ordered NIA to attach the share of an ancestral property of Mohammed Yunus, alias Manjro, after the agency filed an application to invoke powers under provisions of Section 33(1) of the UAPA.

In Bharuch town, Mohammad Yunus alias Manjro holds a fractional share in two ancestral properties - one measuring 143.96 square metres and another 29.59 square metres - both co-owned by 20 family members. His individual stake amounts to just 1.59 sq m in the first and 0.33 sq m in the second, totaling a mere 1.92 sq m. Despite the minuscule ownership, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) sought to attach these assets as part of forfeiture proceedings linked to an ongoing case.

Manjro's legal counsel challenged the move, pointing out that the case has been pending for nearly ten years. He cited the 2013 amendment to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), which, according to him, permits attachment only if the properties are intended for use in terrorist activities. The lawyer argued that Manjro's minor interest in the family properties could not reasonably be seen as meeting that threshold.

However, Special Judge MP Purohit overruled the objections. In his order, the judge stated that the properties located at Ward No. 3, City Survey Nos. 3614 and 3615 in Bharuch - despite the small share - are to be provisionally attached under Section 33(1) of the UAPA. The court further directed that Manjro is barred from transferring, selling, mortgaging, or otherwise disposing of his share in either property until the trial concludes.

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