Bombay High Court Grants Bail to Chhota Rajan in 2001 Hotelier Murder Case but the Gangster to remain in Jail

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday granted bail to gangster Chhota Rajan, setting aside his life sentence in connection with the 2001 murder case of hotelier Jaya Shetty. Shetty was shot dead by two unidentified miscreants on May 4, 2001.

The decision was delivered by a two-judge bench comprising of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Prithviraj Chavan, who directed Rajan, who is currently lodged at Tihar jail in Delhi, to furnish a bail bond of Rs 1 lakh.

Despite the bail order, Rajan will remain in jail as he faces charges in several other criminal cases. The court’s ruling follows a May 2024 judgment by a special court that convicted Rajan for Shetty's murder and sentenced him to life imprisonment. Rajan subsequently appealed before the High Court, challenging the conviction, sought suspension of his sentence and a bail in the matter.

The case dates back to May 4, 2001, when Shetty, the owner of the Golden Crown hotel in central Mumbai, was murdered by two alleged members of Rajan’s gang. Investigations revealed that Shetty had been receiving extortion demands from Hemant Pujari, a member of Rajan's gang, and was killed for having refused to pay. Shetty’s matter was one of the 71 cases against Rajan, handed over to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) after he was deported from Indonesia in 2015.

Rajan is currently serving a life sentence in Tihar Jail, Delhi, for the 2011 murder of journalist Jyotirmoy Dey, the second case in which he is already been convicted and have been denied bail.​