New Delhi, Feb 28 (IANS) The Pune Police on Friday detained the accused who allegedly raped a 26-year-old woman inside a stationary bus at Swargate bus station in Shirur Tehsil.

According to a media report, the accused Dattatray Gade was detained by the Pune Police at around midnight from the city’s Shirur tehsil.

Gade is named in half a dozen cases of theft, robbery, and chain-snatching in Pune and Ahilyanagar districts. He has been out on bail since 2019 for one of the offences.

On Thursday, the Pune Police had deployed drones and a dog squad in Shirur tehsil to nab Gade, who allegedly raped the woman inside a Shiv Shahi bus of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) at Swargate bus station in Pune two days ago.

At least 13 police teams were formed to nab Gade, a resident of Gunat village in Pune.

Pune City and Pune Rural Police also launched a search operation in Gunat village, including in sugarcane fields, with drones and dog squads, officials said. More than 100 police officers reached the village, they said.

Swargate in Pune is one of the largest bus depots of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC).

According to the survivor, she was waiting for a bus for Phaltan in Satara district at one of the platforms around 5:45 a.m. on Tuesday, when Gade engaged her in conversation, calling her ‘didi’ (sister), 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 premises. As the lights inside the bus were not on, she hesitated to get in but the man convinced her that it was the right vehicle. Gade then followed her and raped her, the woman, who works in the medical field, told police.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said on Thursday that the government would push for capital punishment for the accused, while Shiv Sena MLA Nilesh Rane suggested reviving the “encounter squad”.

The accused, Dattatray Ramdas Gade (37), has a history of criminal offences, including theft, robbery, and chain-snatching in Pune and Ahilyanagar district. He had been out on bail since 2019 in one of the cases.

As Gade, a resident of Gunat village in Pune, evaded arrest for over two days, officials had deployed 13 police teams to track him down before detaining him on the night between Thursday and Friday.

Law enforcement authorities on Thursday had issued a monetary reward of Rs 1 lakh for any details leading to the apprehension of the accused.

Maharashtra Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik has ordered an immediate security audit of all bus stands and depots across the state, following the rape of a woman at the Swargate depot in Pune.

According to a statement issued on Thursday, the Minister also directed the removal of all registered buses parked at depots and bus stationsand vehicles seized by transport offices by April 15.

Noting the increasing number of female passengers, Sarnaik stressed the need to deploy more women security guards at bus stations.

–IANS

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