Punjab Man With ‘Links’ To Lawrence Bishnoi Gang Gets SC Relief In Rape Case: Report

A Punjab man was granted bail by the Supreme Court who was not only booked for rape but also accused of threatening the complainant by allegedly leveraging his links to gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, reported the Indian Express. 
The accused produced purported evidence, as part of his bail petition, which included WhatsApp chats and call records that an SP-level Punjab Police officer made to the woman who had filed the rape complaint.  
The accused claimed he was in a live-in relationship with the complainant who later came into a relationship with the police officer. The accused further claimed that the police officer used his influence within the police force to implicate him in a false case of rape and threats against the woman. 
However, the petitioner’s advocate, RK Grewal claimed there was no evidence to back that the complainant threatened the complainant in the name of Bishnoi. 
“There is not an iota of evidence to suggest that the petitioner threatened the complainant in the name of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi. She concocted the false story to implicate the petitioner under the influence of the… officer serving in the Police Department,” Grewal told the Indian Express. 
” The motive behind the false implication is evident from the WhatsApp chats and video recordings, as the officer was in a relationship with the complainant and could not tolerate the petitioner’s relationship with her,” he added. 
Jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi has been alleged as the mastermind in singer Siddhu Moose Wala’s murder and the firing outside actor Salman Khan’s residence in Mumbai. He has been in the news this year as the main accused in the murder of Nationalist Congress Party leader Baba Siddiqui. 
Days after Siddiqui’s murder, on October 12, Lok Sabha MP Pappu Yadav claimed he received a death threat from the Bishnoi gang. 
The threat to Yadav was made after the Independent MP from Bihar’s Purnea voiced criticism against the gangster saying he would dismantle the gang’s network within 24 hours if permitted by law.