MUMBAI, Mar 21: Two Maharashtra legislators who allegedly assaulted traffic police officer Sachin Suryawanshi were today arrested and later sent to a day in police custody.
Kshitij Thakur and Ram Kadam were arrested after they surrendered before the Crime Branch this morning. A local court later remanded both in one-day police custody.
“Thakur and Kadam were sent to police custody for one day. They would be produced again in the court tomorrow,” public prosecutor Kiran Bendbar told reporters.
The Crime Branch told the court that custody of the two legislators was necessary to identify other 15 people who also assaulted Suryawanshi.
“There were 15 others who also allegedly assaulted Suryawanshi and for identifying them we need their custody,” said Bendbar.
Further, the prosecutor said Crime Branch also wanted to probe how over 15 people assembled in a very short time and started assaulting Suryawanshi.
The court was also told that Suryawanshi was yesterday discharged from St George Hospital and admitted to Bombay Hospital after his health deteriorated.
The prosecution also told the court that Sections 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) and 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty) of Indian Penal Code, invoked in this case, were non-bailable, and this was a very serious offence and the investigation was in progress.
On March 19, an FIR was registered at Marine Drive police station against Thakur (Independent), Kadam (MNS) and 14 others for allegedly beating up the 31-year-old police sub inspector, attached to Worli Traffic Police, inside Vidhan Bhawan premises. Later, Crime Branch took over the probe.
Prior to the March 19 incident inside the Legislature Complex, Suryawanshi had stopped Thakur’s vehicle on the Bandra-Worli Sea Link when the MLA was on his way to the Assembly. Thakur was reportedly fined for speeding, there was an altercation, and he later alleged that Suryawanshi misbehaved with him.
The police officer, who was summoned to the House following Thakur’s allegation of misbehaviour, was thrashed at the entrance to the visitors’ gallery of Assembly by a group of MLAs, including Thakur, Kadam, Rajan Salvi (Shiv Sena) and Pradeep Jaiswal (Independent).
The accused have been booked under IPC sections 143 (unlawful assembly), 341 (wrongful restraint), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) and 506 (ii) (criminal intimidation). (PTI)
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