Three arrested for assaulting cop in Colaba

Mumbai: Three persons have been arrested for allegedly assaulting an on-duty police constable in the BEST Junction area of Colaba in the wee hours of Tuesday

Mumbai: Three persons have been arrested for allegedly assaulting an on-duty police constable in the BEST Junction area of Colaba in the wee hours of Tuesday.

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The arrested accused have been identified as Apurva Kolabkar, 25, Adarsh Patil, 25, and Ashwajeet Merchant, 22, while another suspect, identified as Sumit Kasare, 31, is at large. While Kolabkar and Patil are fishermen, Merchant is unemployed and Kasare works in a bakery. All of them are residents of Colaba.

According to the Colaba police, the constable, Manik Tople, was patrolling the area on his motorbike when the incident happened. Around 2.30am, Tople spotted four men sitting on the pavement and went over to check. After seeing the policeman approaching them, two of the four left from the spot, raising suspicion.

“When I asked the remaining two men what they were doing and they started shouting at me, saying they would call journalists and defame me. They kept arguing and I decided to call for backup. As soon as I removed my mobile phone from my pocket, one of them snatched it from my hands. I tried retrieving it but he pushed me. At the same time, the two men, who had left earlier, returned to the spot,” Tople said in his statement.

Tople then unclipped his wireless radio from his belt, but the accused slapped it out of his hands. When he bent down to pick it up, they kicked it away and started assaulting him. The assault continued for three to four minutes after which the accused fled the scene. Tople then informed the control room about the incident and a police team rushed to the spot.

The police managed to arrest three accused within a few minutes.

“We have booked the accused for assault with intent to deter a public servant from discharging his duty and criminal intimidation under the Indian Penal Code. Efforts are underway to trace and apprehend the other accused,” a police officer said.

This is the second such incident of assault on an on-duty policeman in the last one week. On December 21, the Kandivali police had arrested Ram Gonte, a vegetable vendor, after he allegedly attacked a police constable with a knife. The incident took place after the cop stopped Gonte from urinating on the road.