Nagpur: In a case that raises serious questions about prison surveillance and the reach of criminal networks, a Sessions Court in Nagpur has been told that an accused allegedly ran a high-stakes extortion plot from behind bars, targeting none other than Union Minister Nitin Gadkari.
The accused, Jayesh Pujari, is alleged to have masterminded a Rs 100 crore extortion attempt while lodged in Hindalga Central Jail in Belagavi, using a network of contacts and intermediaries to execute his plan.
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During court proceedings, a former officer of the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) revealed that Pujari maintained detailed diaries inside jail, not of thoughts or reflections, but of power.
These diaries reportedly contained mobile and landline numbers of influential figures, including political leaders and members of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, along with contact details linked to Gadkari’s office.
According to investigators, these numbers became tools in a carefully plotted extortion attempt.
The prosecution told the court that on March 21, 2023, a threat call was made using a number sourced just days earlier. The demand: An astronomical Rs 100 crore.
Behind that call, the prosecution claims, was a chain of instructions originating from inside the prison.
A crucial witness, Manjula Anandappa, described as Pujari’s associate, provided a disturbing account of how she became entangled in the case.
She testified that she procured the contact number of Gadkari’s public relations office on March 15, allegedly at Pujari’s direction. What followed, she claimed, was not voluntary assistance but coercion masked as affection.
According to her statement, Pujari promised marriage but simultaneously exerted pressure, including threats involving objectionable photographs, to ensure compliance. Her bank account, investigators say, was also used as part of the extortion attempt, tightening the noose around her involvement.
Prison privileges under scanner
The case has also cast a spotlight on conditions inside Hindalga Central Jail.
Testimony in court suggested that Pujari had access to amenities such as a television and a bed, facilities that, the prosecution argues, may have allowed him the comfort and means to strategise and communicate beyond what is typically expected in incarceration.
These revelations have sparked concerns about whether systemic lapses enabled the accused to operate with relative ease from within prison walls.
The case is currently being heard by District and Sessions Judge A.K. Sharma, with the Dhantoli Police Station having registered multiple serious charges against Pujari and two others.
As the trial progresses, more witnesses are expected to be examined, potentially shedding further light on the alleged conspiracy, and whether it points to a larger, more organised network operating beyond the confines of a single jail cell.
What emerges so far is a troubling picture:
A prison cell that may not have confined, but instead enabled, a high-profile criminal plot.
