Pune Civic Encroachment Officer Files Atrocity Case Against 9 Persons Over Alleged Abuse, Extortion Attempt
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Pune, May 21, 2026: Shivajinagar Police have registered an offence under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act against nine persons for allegedly abusing a Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) encroachment department officer with casteist remarks, threatening him and demanding money to withdraw complaints filed against civic officials.
The accused have been identified as Hrishikesh Abhiman Sawant of Shahu Colony on Sinhagad Road, Sunil Jayawantrao Pawar of Bharati Vihar in Katraj, Umer Mainuddin Shaikh, Rajendra Vilas Jadhav of Taljai Pathar in Dhankawadi, Ramesh Vishnu Khamkar of Narayan Peth, Shankar Kinnu Thakur of Parvati Darshan, Milind Jadhav, Nagubai alias Meenatai Siddappa Dhotre of Deep Bungalow Chowk in Shivajinagar, and Kavita Vinaykumar Patekar of Mangdewadi in Katraj.
The complaint was lodged by a divisional encroachment officer with Shivajinagar Police Station. The incident allegedly took place inside the Pune Municipal Corporation premises on March 27, 2026.
According to police, the complainant was performing official duties when accused Hrishikesh Sawant allegedly obstructed him, picked an argument and abused him using caste-related slurs. He also allegedly threatened the officer, saying he would ensure that he lost his job.
Police said Sunil Pawar and others allegedly targeted backward-class officers working in the PMC’s encroachment department to prevent repeated action against illegal roadside stalls linked to persons having vested interests. The accused allegedly filed false complaints against civic officials with different government departments to create pressure on them.
The complaint further states that the accused allegedly demanded ₹10,000 from Encroachment Inspector Dhammanand Gaikwad, promising that they would withdraw all complaints filed against him and would not lodge further complaints in future.
It was also alleged that accused Kavita Patekar misused her status as a differently-abled person to stage repeated protests outside the PMC building over personal issues, thereby obstructing government work. The complaint also accused the group of spreading misleading information about civic officers and employees on social media to defame them.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Chandrakant Bhosale is conducting further investigation into the case.
