Multiple highway & Raigad police teams to probe Vinayak Mete accident case

Following the death of ex-MLC and leader of pro-Maratha outfit, Shiv Sangram, Vinayak Mete, in an accident on the Pune-Mumbai expressway on Sunday, the police have formed multiple teams to probe how the accident occurred and whether there was any conspiracy involved

Following the death of ex-MLC and leader of pro-Maratha outfit, Shiv Sangram, Vinayak Mete, in an accident on the Pune-Mumbai expressway on Sunday, the police have formed multiple teams to probe how the accident occurred and whether there was any conspiracy involved.

People pay their tribute to Maratha community leader Vinayak Mete, who died in an accident on the Mumbai-Pune expressway in Raigad district on Sunday. (PTI)

In the wake of the incident, chief minister Eknath Shinde ordered a probe saying, “All angles will be investigated by the police.” While his cabinet colleague Chandrakant Patil said, “It’s difficult to say at this time what went wrong and how the incident took place. But the Maharashtra police have the capability to investigate the case and find out the truth.”

The teams will investigate the exact cause of the accident and catch the driver of the truck who fled the spot after the mishap. Officials said that they are scanning the CCTV footage on the highway.

Police officials from Raigad said that they are investigating the accident. Superintendent of police Ashok Dudhe, said, “I was at the spot to examine the incident. We are going to take the driver’s statement exactly how the incident occurred and will verify it with the CCTV footage and other technical details.”

“Two separate teams have been formed to investigate the accident. The RTO team will check at what speed the car was running and exactly at what speed it got locked,” he said.

Mete died in the early hours of Sunday when the SUV he was travelling in met with an accident near the Bhatan tunnel in Raigad district on the Pune-Mumbai expressway.

Sunita Salunkhe-Thakare, superintendent of police (traffic), said, “After getting information about the accident, I immediately visited the spot and the SP Raigad range and team were at the spot to register the case. Now forensic and technical expert teams have reached the spot to collect evidence.”

Asked who was at fault, she said, “As of now, we cannot comment more on it because expert opinion is awaited and there is much more value in such cases to find out the exact cause of death.”