Badlapur sexual assault: Accused Akshay Shinde shot dead by police in clash | Mumbai News

According to Thane police, a case was registered against Shinde at Boisar police station last week after his divorced second wife filed a complaint. He was charged under Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code for having unnatural sexual intercourse with her. The case was later transferred to Thane and taken over by the Thane Crime Branch, which had obtained a search warrant in the third case against Shinde.

The CID took Shinde into custody at around 5.30 pm from Taloja Jail, where he was being held. A team of around 10 policemen escorted him out of the jail in a police vehicle. Three armed officers sat beside the 24-year-old, a senior Thane police official said.

The officer added, “When the police vehicle reached Mumbra Bypass, Shinde grabbed the pistol of Assistant Police Inspector Nilesh More and fired two shots at him, injuring the policeman in the leg.”

Another police officer sitting near Shinde responded to the sudden attack and fired three shots at the suspect. All three bullets hit Shinde in the upper body. The injured 24-year-old was subsequently taken to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital in Kalwa, where he was declared brought dead, the senior police officer said.

On August 16, Badlapur East police had arrested the 24-year-old primary school cleaner on charges of sexually assaulting two four-year-old kindergarten girls. One of the girls was reportedly molested on August 13. When she returned home that day, she told her parents about the incident.

The next day, her parents visited the school and informed the principal about the incident, but the principal refused to accept that the incident could have taken place on school premises. The parents then had the girl examined by a doctor, who confirmed the allegations. The parents then contacted the school again, but the authorities ignored their complaint.

Meanwhile, the girl revealed that another schoolmate was similarly assaulted by the accused. The parents of the second girl then approached the school authorities. Finally, on August 16, based on the complaint of the second girl, the Badlapur East police registered a case and arrested the accused.

The next day, however, the girl and her pregnant mother had to wait for about ten hours, first for their statements to be recorded and later for the child to be examined by a doctor. The apathetic behavior of the school authorities and the police angered the parents of the schoolchildren.

Parents decided to protest the issue and gathered outside the school on August 20, but the school's governing bodies refused to receive them. Angry parents, supported by locals, then blocked a major road and the bridge connecting Badlapur East to West. The lack of response from the authorities led to massive protests. Protesters marched to the railway station and blocked the railway line for about ten hours, attracting widespread media attention and strong political reactions from opponents.

Responding to the public outcry, the state government set up a special investigation team (SIT) under IPS officer Arti Sigh to probe the case. The SIT later initiated a second POCSO case against Shinde based on a complaint by the parents of the first victim. Both the cases were investigated by the SIT and a chargesheet has already been filed against Shinde in the special POCSO court in Kalyan.

Besides Shinde, the SIT has also named school principal Udya Kotwal, secretary Tushar Apte and school principal Archana Athavale as accused in the case. Kotwal's pre-arrest bail plea was rejected by the Kalyan court and he has approached the High Court for help.

The third case against Shinde was initially registered in Boisar and transferred to Badlapur police station last week. The 23-year-old woman stated in her complaint that she married Akshay Shinde in 2021 and left him after just 13 days due to sexual harassment and infidelity.

She said, “In my community, I was banned from marrying anyone from the Shinde family. Akshay hid his identity by claiming to be a Pawar and married me. Due to the lockdown, my family could not verify his details. Thirteen days after the wedding, I received Akshay's Aadhaar card and came to know that his real name was Shinde. After enduring several cases of sexual harassment from him, I fled the house.”