Woman harassed near Karjat railway bridge, cop among two booked
A policeman deployed with a DySP's convoy and his associate face charges after harassing a woman in Karjat
A case of harassment of a woman near a railway bridge in Karjat has come to light, with one of the accused turning out to be a policeman. The policeman is said to be deployed with the DySP's convoy. A case has been registered against him and his associate at the police station.
The incident took place around 9.30 pm on Sunday, September 13. The woman who filed the complaint was returning home to Gundge from Karjat market with her sister. Near the railway bridge close to the Karjat octroi post, two men followed them. According to the complaint, one of them harassed the woman, saying "Chal yete ka chal" to her.
After the incident, the woman called her husband and told him everything, following which he reached the spot. Both accused were identified. One of them, Pramod Maroti Patil (resident of Bhisegaon), turned out to be a policeman, while the other was Mahendra Bhagwan Bhandare (resident of Gundge).
During the incident, the woman's sister had recorded the entire episode on video on her mobile phone. It is alleged that the policeman accused pressured them to delete this video. Following this, the family demanded that the matter be taken seriously.
After the incident, the woman and her family went to Karjat police station to file a complaint. The family alleged that police initially dragged their feet on registering the case because the accused policeman was part of the DySP's convoy. This angered villagers from the surrounding area.
Around 20 to 30 villagers gathered at the police station demanding immediate action on the complaint and that a case be registered against the accused. Following pressure from the villagers, the case was finally registered around 3.30 am.
A case has been registered against Pramod Patil and Mahendra Bhandare under Sections 75(3), 78 and 79 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023. The allegation of harassment of a woman against a policeman himself has sparked discussion in the area, with people watching the further police investigation closely.
