The president of Premier Automobiles Employees Union, Ashok Vishnu Satardekar, held in connection with the Datta S murder conspiracy here last night, was remanded to police custody till April 21 by the 19th Esplanade Court.
Police sources said the union leader was an old friend of wanted gangster Chota Rajan, presently believed to be based somewhere in Malaysia and had complained to the Rajan gang about threats to his life after he played a key role in breaking up the strike by Samant's union at the PAL factory at Kurla in north-east Mumbai.
Some supporters of Samant had put out a contract to eliminate Ashok Satardekar but underworld sources leaked out this information. The contract is believed to have been given to one Manchrekar, a former associate of Guru Satam, a key aide of Chota Rajan. Manchrekar and Satam had fallen out earlier.
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Meanwhile, Satardekar had got in touch with Bhagwan Singh Kunwar Singh alias Bharat Vijay Nepali, a prominent Rajan gang member, who actually planned Samant's killing.
Nepali was held at the Delhi airport as he was trying to sneak out of the country to Kathmandu in February this year and is at present in judicial custody here.
The company had declared a partial lockout in June last year following a go-slow agitation and strike by the Samant led Kamghar Agadhi. The lock out was lifted on November 25 last. The 47-year-old Ashok Satardekar was arrested at his residence in Chembur, north-east Mumbai, last night and brought to the crime branch. Samant was riddled with bullets near his Powai residence here, not far from the Indian Institute of Technology on January 16 last, while he was on his way to the Kamgar Aghadi office at suburban Ghatkopar in his jeep.
Samant's driver was seriously injured but survived to give a statement and description of the killers.
Eight others have earlier been held in connection with the case which acquired political overtone with the Sena-BJP government coming under attack on the issue of law and order.
Police sources said Satardekar was apprehensive much before a contract was out against him as earlier the Samant led union had indulged in violence during the lock-out period.
Satardekar had formed the "Kamgar Ekta Premier Sanghatana" which was instrumental in breaking the strike.
He is the secretary of the "Sahyadri Krida Mandal" at Chembur and used to organise the annual celebrations of Ganpati festival on which at least Rs one crore was spent.
The mandal, among other things organised sports events in the Tilak Nagar locality.