City police have arrested two suspects for the murder of 18-year-old Ayush Komkar alias Govind, who was shot dead on Friday evening in Nana Peth, reportedly to avenge the murder of NCP leader and former corporator Vanraj Andekar last year in the same area.
The two suspects arrested by police are members of the Andekar gang, which is led by the Vanraj’s father, Bandu Andekar. The arrested accused have been identified as Yash Siddhesjwar Patil, a resident of Doke Talim Nana Peth, and Amit Patole, a resident of Nana Peth. They were arrested at around 10pm on Saturday. Police said they are on the look out for two other accused.
Additionally, gang leader Bandu Andekar alias Suryakant, and 12 others - Krushna Andekar, Shivam Andekar, Swaraj Vadekar, Tushar Vadekar, Abhishekh Andekar, Shivraj Andekar, Vrundawani Andekar, Laxmi Andekar, Aman Yusuf Pathan alias Khan and Yash Patil - have been booked under murder charges and an FIR has been filed at the Samarth Police Station on the basis of a complaint filed by the victim’s mother. All accused have been booked under sections 103 (1), 61 (2), 3 (5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), sections 3(25) of the Arms Act, and 135 of the Maharashtra Police Adhiniyam.
Deceased Ayush was the son of Bandu Andekar’s daughter, Kalyani Ganesh Komkar, and the nephew of late NCP corporator Vanraj Andekar.
{{/usCountry}}Deceased Ayush was the son of Bandu Andekar’s daughter, Kalyani Ganesh Komkar, and the nephew of late NCP corporator Vanraj Andekar.
{{/usCountry}}Speaking about the case on Sunday after Ganesh immersion, city police commissioner Amitesh Kumar said that police did not have any intelligence input about a possible retaliation attack on the son of Ganesh Komkar who is in jail in connection with the Vanraj Andekar murder case.
“We have foiled a murder conspiracy based on intelligence inputs in the Katraj area. In this case, we did not have any intelligence, neither did we anticipate the murder of his own grandson. As of now, we have made some arrests and will give them strict punishments for their act,” the police chief said.
Meanwhile, the arrested duo was produced in court on Sunday, which remanded them to police custody till September 12. In court, police claimed that the accused had hatched the murder plan to take revenge for the murder of Vanraj Andekar. Furnishing more details, they said Aman Pathan and Yash Patil fired at Ayush. Amit Patole and Sujal Meragu were also present at the spot. After firing, the accused raised slogans in the names of Bandu Andekar and Krsuhna Andekar. Police recovered 12 rounds of cartridges and a half-burnt round of bullets.
According to police, nine rounds were recovered from the body. Public prosecutor Dilip Gaikwad demanded seven days police custody for the accused while defence lawyers Prashant Pawar and Mithun Chavan informed court that civil disputes were going on between the Andekar and Komkar families. Prashnat Pawar said, “This is a deliberate attempt to malign my clients’ image ahead of civic polls.”
Last year, in connection with the murder of Vanraj Andekar, police had arrested 23 accused, including Ayush’s father, Ganesh Komkar, Somnath Gaikwad, Anirudhha Dudhbhate, Jayant Komkar and Sanjivani Komkar. They were booked under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) and are currently in jail.
Last week, the Bharti Vidyapeeth police and crime branch had arrested a certain Datta Kale for allegedly doing recce on some of those involved in Vanraj’s murder. Police suspect that he was deployed by the Andekar gang to avenge the murder of Vanraj Andekar by attacking members of the rival gang. Bharti Vidyapeeth police booked a total of eight individuals, including Kale and Krsuhna Andekar, son of Bandu Andekar. Police sources said, Krsuhna Andekar allegedly secured a rented room for Kale in Ambegaon Pathar, so that he can do a recce of the area around the target’s residence.