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HC orders FIR within 48 hours in Pune road rage assault case; slams Khadak police for inaction
n its order, the Bombay HC has directed the Pune police commissioner to follow legal procedure and issue show-cause notice to Khadak police station in-charge, police inspector (PI) Shashikant Chavan, seeking an explanation for the delay.
PUNE: The Bombay High Court (HC) has directed the Pune police to register an FIR within 48 hours based on a complaint by a man who alleged that his brother and he were brutally assaulted and abused on religious grounds in a road rage incident earlier. The court also criticised the Khadak police for refusing to register a case despite repeated appeals by the petitioner.
In its order, the Bombay HC has directed the Pune police commissioner to follow legal procedure and issue show-cause notice to Khadak police station in-charge, police inspector (PI) Shashikant Chavan, seeking an explanation for the delay.
“If the explanation is not justifiable, the police commissioner will initiate disciplinary action against the said officer in accordance with service jurisprudence and the applicable service rules,” the HC order stated. The HC has sought a compliance report by October 6, 2025.
An HC division bench of justices Ravindra V Ghuge and Gautam A Ankhad expressed strong disapproval of Chavan’s conduct, noting that he had filed a leave note before the hearing and that he voluntarily chose not to appear in court to assist the additional public prosecutor. The court observed that even in open court, Chavan refused to register an FIR based on the petitioner’s complaint.
“What is surprising is that the FIR indicates a charge of attempt to murder against the petitioner, who, as seen in the photographs before us, was brutally assaulted. Our judicial conscience is shocked by the conduct of the Khadak police station,” the judges said in the order, terming the case fit for stringent action against the officer.
According to the petitioner, the incident took place earlier near a public road in Pune, allegedly triggered by a dispute over vehicle honking. Shohaib Sayyed claimed that he and his brother were attacked and subjected to religious slurs by Harsh Keshwani; his relatives Karan, Bharat, and Girish Keshwani; and unidentified accomplices. The court was shown photographs and Sassoon General Hospital (SGH) medical records documenting five injuries, torn clothes, and severe trauma.
A passerby reportedly video-recorded the assault. The assistant public prosecutor submitted that the video was filmed by a member of the group accused of attacking the petitioner and his brother, and that an FIR in a counter case was registered at Khadak police station on April 27, 2025.
Advocate Debajyoti Talukdar, representing the petitioner, argued that his client’s fundamental rights under articles 14 and 15 of the Constitution had been violated. “Despite repeated representations and clear medical evidence, the Khadak police failed to act. This is not just negligence—it is institutional bias,” Talukdar said.
