Pune: Sangli district saw a total shutdown on Monday as social outfits and opposition parties demanded suspension of top police officers in connection with the custodial killing of 26-year-old Aniket Kothale on November 6.
The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) demanded resignations of Dattatrey Shinde, Superintendent of Police, and Vishwas Nangre-Patil, Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kolhapur range. “The perpetrators of Kothale’s custodial murder have tarnished the reputation of the Maharashtra police. Such a disturbing incident never occurred when late R.R. Patil was the Home Minister,” said MNS leader Bala Nandgaonkar.
Kothale, along with his friend Amol Bhandare, was arrested with the charges of waylaying and robbing an engineer at knifepoint on November 6 and remanded in police custody.
A CID probe found that sub-inspector Yuvraj Kamte and his colleagues at Sangli city police station hung the suspect upside down, stripped him, and beat him relentlessly till the rope securing him snapped and the victim fell head first into a bucket of water.
The probe report further said how Kothale, who was forced to wear a hood, was hit below the knee for ‘maximum pain’. Mr. Kamte and his team refused to stop even as the victim was screaming for help.
On November 8, six policemen including Mr. Kamte, were arrested and remanded in police custody. On Saturday, seven more policemen were suspended.
Family alleges foul play
Kothale’s family, however, alleged that he had exposed Mr. Kamte’s alleged lurid dealings for which he was framed. The day Kothale died in custody, Mr. Kamte and his team burnt the body in Amboli Ghat, more than 200 km from Sangli. Mr. Kamte later claimed that Kothale and Mr. Bhandare had fled to Karnataka.
Bhumata Brigade leader Trupti Desai, who met with the victim’s family on Monday, said that Kothale had dared to unravel a racket being run by Mr. Kamte. “He and Mr. Bhandare were framed. Mr. Kamte’s superiors misled the Kothale family when they requested details about his [Kothale’s] condition in police custody.”
Ms. Desai demanded suspension of Deputy Superintendent of Police Dipali Kale for furnishing the Kothale family with ‘false information’ despite the fact that Kothale had already died in police custody. “If Ms. Kale was not suspended, the Bhumata Brigade would launch an agitation in Sangli on Tuesday.”
Senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan urged Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to visit the district to get to the bottom of the murder and order a probe.
On Sunday, the Minister of State for Home, Deepak Kesarkar, visited the victim’s family and assured them of speedy justice. Mr. Kesarkar hinted that a probe against top police officers may be initiated soon.
