File photo of gangster Abu Salem being taken to a court
Gangster Abu Salem has been sentenced to life in jail by an anti-terror court in Mumbai in connection with the murder of builder Pradeep Jain in 1995.
On February 16, the special TADA court had found Salem and two others - Mehndi Hasan and Virendra Jhamb - guilty of conspiracy to murder Mr Jain, who was shot dead outside his Juhu residence March 7, 1995 following a property dispute.
Salem was extradited from Portugal in 2005. Clauses in the extradition treaty prevents Salem from being given a death sentence or more than 25 years in prison.The public prosecutor however, argued in court that the provisions of the extradition treaty are for the executive to look into. Based on the facts and evidence against Salem, the court therefore handed him, a life sentence.
Salem is an accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts and was extradited after a protracted legal battle. The Supreme Court of Portugal, in 2012, had dismissed the CBI for prolonging his stay. Salem has also moved the Portugal court asking it to help cancel his extradition.
In June 2012, Salem was shot at in Taloja Central jail in Navi Mumbai allegedly by gangster Devendra Jagtap alias JD, an accused in the murder of advocate Shahid Azmi who had represented a 26/11 Mumbai terror attack accused.