Police announce Rs 1 lakh reward for information on accused in Pune bus rape case
The officials said that the Pune Police on Thursday announced a reward of Rs 1 lakh for information leading to the arrest of a history-sheeter who allegedly raped a 26-year-old woman inside a state transport bus at the SWARGATE BUS STAND in Pune, reported news agency PTI.
As many as 13 police teams are working to track down accused Dattatray Ramdas Gade (37) who is on the run since the Pune rape case incident which took place on early Tuesday morning, an official said, reported PTI.
A reward of Rs 1 lakh will be given to a person providing information about his whereabouts, Pune police commissioner Amitesh Kumar told PTI
The informer’s name will be kept secret, he added.
Gade has half a dozen cases of theft, robbery and chain-snatching registered against him in Pune and adjoining Ahilyanagar district, and was out on bail since 2019 in one of the offences, reported PTI.
Swargate in Pune City is one of the largest bus depots of the Maharashtra state road Transport corporation (MSRTC).
According to the survivor woman, as she was waiting for a bus for Phaltan in Satara district at one of the platforms around 5.45 am on Tuesday, a man approached and engaged her in conversation, calling her ‘didi’ (sister), and said the bus for Satara had arrived at another platform, reported PTI.
He took her to an empty ‘Shiv Shahi’ AC bus parked elsewhere on the sprawling station premises. As the lights inside the bus were not on, she hesitated to get in at first, but the man convinced her that it was the right vehicle. He then followed her inside and raped her before fleeing, the woman, who works in the medical field, told police, reported PTI.
The shocking Pune rape case in the heart of the city caused an uproar, with Opposition lambasting the BJP-led Maharashtra Goverment over women’s safety.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra’s Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik has ordered a departmental inquiry against the Assistant Transport Superintendent and the Bus Depot Manager of the Swargate Bus Depot in Pune following the February 25 incident in which a 26-year-old woman was allegedly raped inside a parked bus.
According to the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) Minister Sarnaik “has given instructions to suspend them if they are found at fault in the inquiry.”
Additionally, the transport minister has instructed the MSRTC to replace all existing security personnel at the Swargate bus depot with new staff to ensure better safety measures and prevent such incidents in the future.
The incident took place on Tuesday when the rape survivor, a working woman, was waiting for a bus to return home to phaltan , which is located around 100 km away. She was allegedly approached by the accused, who falsely claimed that the bus to her destination was parked elsewhere. He led her to a MSRTC Shivsahi bus parked in the depot and followed her in where he allegedly raped her.
