HC slams ‘VIP treatment’ to Sena councillor held for assaulting doctors

“We want the name of the officer who, after arresting the accused, came up with this innovative idea of producing him through VC. We will call the Commissioner of Police, Thane, to court,” a division bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra V Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad said while hearing a suo motu petition.

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Wednesday pulled up the Maharashtra Police for allegedly extending “VIP treatment” to Shiv Sena councillor Ramesh Mhatre, arrested for allegedly assaulting three doctors at a municipal hospital in Dombivli. It also questioned the State government over the police’s initial decision to produce him before a magistrate through video conferencing after his arrest.

Thane, India - July 08, 2026: File Photo of Ramesh Mhatre, the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) corporator, who was arrested for the alleged assault of doctors and medical staff of a civic-run hospital in Kalyan, India, on Wednesday, July 08, 2026. (Photo by Mahendra Kolhe/ Hindustan Times)

“We want the name of the officer who, after arresting the accused, came up with this innovative idea of producing him through VC. We will call the Commissioner of Police, Thane, to court,” a division bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra V Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad said while hearing a suo motu petition.

The court had on July 18 stayed a magistrate’s order granting bail to Mhatre and three co-accused — Ramesh Pawar, Pramod Nikam and Akshay Karande — all of whom are accused of assaulting doctors and nurses at the Shastri Nagar Municipal Hospital on July 6. Mhatre surrendered on July 19, and all four remain in judicial custody.

Mhatre, a councillor in the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC), and his aides were arrested for allegedly attacking doctors and nurses at the hospital following a dispute.

Taking suo motu cognisance of the Kalyan court’s July 14 bail order, the high court had earlier observed that granting bail was “unjustified”, noting that 18 criminal cases had been registered against Mhatre over the past 36 years.

On Wednesday, the bench expressed strong disapproval of the treatment extended to the accused. “We do not want a situation in this country where the police protect the accused instead of law-abiding citizens,” it observed.

Advocate General Milind Sathe told the court that the decision to produce Mhatre through video conferencing was taken after he collapsed and was admitted to Thane Civil Hospital, where his blood pressure was recorded high.

The explanation failed to convince the bench. “For high blood pressure he was admitted, but while brutally beating the doctors, he did not collapse,” the judges remarked.

Appearing for Mhatre, advocate Sana Raees Khan sought bail on medical grounds, saying the 73-year-old has multiple health issues and only one functioning kidney. She assured the court that he would comply with any conditions imposed and urged it to consider the circumstances leading to the incident.

The bench, however, remained unconvinced. “While he was brutally assaulting the doctors, he did not seem 73 but 25. The way he thrashed those doctors, including women, we are surprised they are alive today. You are a social worker — is your job to protect citizens or assault them?” the judges asked.

The court also questioned whether assaulting doctors could ever be justified. “Suppose a litigant approaches a lawyer and no lawyer is willing to take up the case. Should the litigant start assaulting lawyers? Let him remain in jail for some more time,” it said.

The bench allowed the Indian Medical Association (IMA) to intervene in the proceedings and directed authorities to preserve CCTV footage from both the Shastri Nagar Municipal Hospital, where the assault allegedly took place, and the hospital where Mhatre was admitted after his arrest.