India, March 9 -- A horse once owned by gangster Shyam Dabhade, who was killed in a police encounter in 2016, remains in legal uncertainty nearly eight years later.

While most of Dabhade's assets, including vehicles, were disposed of following police seizure, the mare, housed at a cattle shelter in Maval, has been left in bureaucratic limbo with no resolution in sight.

The Jagat Guru Sant Tukaram Maharaj Gaushala Sansthan in Dhamane has been caring for the animal since 2017, following a court order. According to Rupesh Garade, the centre's treasurer, over Rs.10,000 a month is spend on the horse's feed and medical care.

"I took in the horse as an act of goodwill, thinking the case would conclude soon. But after all these years, there's ...