Pune duo held for running car over cop in Kalamboli

Kumawat was driving the white Maruti Swift, which belongs to his father, and Tayde was in the passenger seat

NAVI MUMBAI: Five days after a 43-year-old police constable was allegedly run over by a car at a checkpoint in Kalamboli, the Navi Mumbai police have arrested two Pune-based men, Soham Kumawat, 22, and Sojal Tayde, 23, from Jalgaon and Ahilyanagar respectively on Friday.

Pune duo held for running car over cop in Kalamboli

Kumawat was driving the white Maruti Swift, which belongs to his father, and Tayde was in the passenger seat. They allegedly fled after the November 8 incident, which left Constable Dilip Hiraman Bhoir of Kalamboli police station with a fracture to his right heel. He is currently stable, police said.

The incident took place around 1am at the junction opposite D-Mart near Avida Hotel Road in Kalamboli Colony. When Bhoir signalled the driver to stop, the car halted. However, the driver did not step out of the vehicle. Instead, he suddenly accelerated towards the constable.

Bhoir suffered a fracture to his right heel and is stable. The complaint was registered only on November 11, as he was traumatised and badly hurt. ACP Vikram Kadam said his statement was taken once he had stabilised.

Police traced the car, which belongs to Kumawat’s father, through CCTV footage and ownership records, and got a mobile number from them. Technical and location analysis led them to the duo, with local police help.

“We arrested Kumawat in Jalgaon and Tayde in Ahilyanagar on November 13. We obtained a transit remand and brought them to Navi Mumbai. They were produced before the local court on November 14,” said an investigating officer.

During questioning, the accused allegedly told police they had come from Pune for sightseeing and wanted to visit Marine Drive, but Google Maps took them through interior roads into Kalamboli. Kumawat had allegedly taken his father’s car without telling him. They said they panicked when signalled to stop and tried to drive away, and that the constable fell onto the bonnet and then the road, but they did not realise it and kept driving.

They have been booked under Sections 109 (1) (attempt to murder), 132 (assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from discharging his duty) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.