Pune bus rape case triggers protests, Deputy CM Ajit Pawar calls for ‘death penalty’ — What we know so far

Pune bus rape case: A 26-year-old woman was allegedly raped inside a stationary Maharashtra state transport bus at the busy Swargate bus station in Pune early Tuesday. The accused, 36-year-old Dattatraya Ramdas Gade, has been absconding. Police said on Wednesday that multiple teams are looking for the accused.

The incident triggered a political storm in Maharashtra, and the probe into the incident continues. 

Pune bus rape case: Here's all you need to know

1. A man allegedly raped a 26-year-old woman inside a state transport bus at the busy Swargate bus stand in Pune, police said on Wednesday. The incident reportedly happened on Tuesday morning when the woman was heading to her village and "was waiting for a bus to go back to her home around 5:30, 6:30 [am]". DCP Smartana Patil shared details of the incident. Read here to learn more

2. Dattatraya Ramdas Gade (36), the suspect who is absconding, has cases of theft and chain-snatching registered against him, said a Swargate police station official. He was out on bail since 2019.

3. The DCP said cases were registered against accused Gade in the past in Shikrapur and Shirur police station limits in Pune district, adding that police have formed eight teams to nab him.

4. What happened exactly? According to the woman, as she was waiting for a bus for Phaltan in Satara district at one of the platforms around 5.45 am on Tuesday, a man approached her and engaged her in conversation, calling her ‘Didi’ (sister), and said the bus for Satara had arrived at another platform.

He then took her to an empty ‘Shiv Shahi’ AC bus parked elsewhere on the sprawling station premises. As the lights inside the bus were not on, she hesitated to get in at first, but the man convinced her that it was the right bus. He then followed her inside and raped her before fleeing, the woman told police.

5. As per MSRTC officials, the man told the woman that he was the conductor of the bus for Phaltan, and hence, she trusted him and went with him, but the police did not confirm this detail.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Smartana Patil said the woman did not approach police immediately after the incident but took another bus for her hometownand narrated the incident to her friend on the phone while travelling. On her friend's advice, she got down within the city limits, and went to the police station, Patil said.

6. Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar said the incident was “extremely shameful, painful, and infuriating for every member of a civilised society”. He said, “The crime committed by the accused is unforgivable, and there can be no punishment except the death penalty. I have personally instructed the Pune Police Commissioner to closely monitor the investigation and ensure immediate arrest of the accused,” Pawar said.

7. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also took the incident seriously and gave necessary instructions to the police, Pawar said. “Instructions have also been given to the Minister of Women and Child Development and the Chairperson of the State Women’s Commission to provide justice, mental support, and all possible assistance to the victim,” Pawar added.

8. The National Commission for Women (NCW) took suo motu cognizance of the Pune bus rape case. The organisation sought “immediate action” in the matter.

9. According to news agency PTI, Transport minister Pratap Sarnaik directed that all 23 private security guards employed at the bus station should be replaced. He also instructed MSRTC managing director Vivek Bhimanwar to conduct a departmental inquiry and submit a report in seven days, an official statement said.

10. As the incident created outrage, local Shiv Sena (UBT) workers staged a protest at the Swargate station during which the security office on the premises was vandalised.

NCP (SP) leader and Baramati MP Supriya Sule lashed out at the BJP-led Maharashtra government. “There is a police post nearby, and still such an assault takes place, which shows that anti-social elements do not have any fear of law,” she said, adding that the home department had failed to curb crime in Pune.

Maharashtra Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal claimed that incidents of rape were on rise in the state. “When the Nirbhaya gangrape incident took place in Delhi, people changed the regime. You [BJP-led government] promote Laadki Bahin scheme for women (providing financial aid), but ignore basic issues of the people,” he said.

The MSRTC is one of the biggest public transport bodies in the country, with a fleet of more than 14,000 buses. Every day, more than 55 lakh passengers travel by its buses.

(With inputs from PTI)