The rape of a 26-year-old woman inside a stationary state transport bus at the busy Swargate station has triggered uproar in Pune, with many on social media calling on the Maharashtra government, led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, to sack Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar.
"Hope everybody wakes up from their slumber after the shocking and shameful incident at Swargate. It is not just a women's safety issue; the issue is much larger. Over the last few decades, there has been gradual deterioration of law and order in Pune," said an X (formerly Twitter) user.
"It is highly disturbing, and I wish law and order is established. I hope Punekars stop tolerating such incidents. Hope they don't forget this like Porsche murder case," commented another user.
"The standard of policing has gone from bad to worse. Traffic policing is non-existent. Police take an interest and investigate only 'lucrative' cases. The force is morphing from public servants to taxpayer-salaried extortionists with zero interest in community policing," a third user wrote.
This isn't the first time that the netizens are demanding the sacking of Amitesh Kumar. After assuming the post of Pune Police Commissioner in January 2024, Kumar has consistently been in the news. He was criticised for the handling of the Porsche crash case and later the Bopdev Ghat gangrape case.
Check out the reactions below:
What is the Swargate bus rape case?
According to the police, a 26-year-old woman was waiting for a bus for Phaltan at one of the platforms at the Swargate bus station around 5.45am on Tuesday. Accused Dattatraya Ramdas Gade (36) approached her and said the bus for Satara had arrived at another platform. He took her to an empty Shiv Shahi AC bus parked elsewhere on the 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.
