According to a press release, ballistic expert has identified in a sessions court two pistols used by the assassins to kill Gulshan Kumar outside a temple four years ago. Deposing before sessions judge M L Tahilyani, ballistic expert M L Pisad said the empties recovered from the site had indicated that the bullets were fired from these pistols.

He told special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam that 11 bullets were fired from one pistol and 6 from the other. According to the prosecution, the pistols had been recovered from Rashid Abdul Daud Merchant and approver Mohammed Ali Shaikh alias Chacha. All the accused, including the approver, were brought to the court to stand trial.

The prosecution case is that Gulshan Kumar was gunned down on August 12, 1997, due to business rivalry. Nadeem and Ramesh Taurani, chairman of TIPS Cassettes Ltd, allegedly paid Rs 25 lakh contract amount to the conspirators. Abu Salem, the right hand man of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim had called a conspiracy meeting in Dubai where the contract was accepted by the killers, the prosecution alleged. The alleged killers were Mohammed Rauf Raja, Anil Sharma and Abdul Rauf Daud Merchant. Anil Sharma is reportedly absconding, while the other two are facing trial. Besides them, 15 others have been charged with criminal conspiracy to kill Gulshan Kumar. They are in custody and are produced before the sessions court regularly. Nadeem has been discharged by a London court in an extradition case. The accused, including Taurani, have pleaded not guilty to the charges framed against them on April 30