Robbers thrash cops with rods in Pune

Three policemen and a resident of Royal Arcade, a residential society in Bibvewadi, were injured by a four-member gang of armed robbers in the wee hours of Wednesday.

The suspects entered the society and managed to steal valuables from three partments under lock and key from B and C blocks.

The injured resident, Darshan Dattatray Salunke-Deshmukh (32), informed the local police when the robbers were breaking into the office of a private software development company located in the seventh floor of another building.

Senior inspector MS Gawade of Sahakarnagar police station said that the police received the emergency call at 3.58 am on Wednesday. At first, three policemen in plainclothes reached the spot at 4.01 am. They decided to go to the seventh floor by the stairs instead of using the elevator.

Salunke-Deshmukh met assistant sub-inspector JA Qazi, and constables Santosh Borkar and Sachin Malwe on the stairs. The suspects were alerted and threw a broken lock on the approaching policemen, injuring one.

Four more policemen — one armed with a revolver — who had reached the spot and were climbing the narrow staircase were attacked by the suspects with iron rods.

They also beat up Darshan, a software developer, who sustained serious injuries.

The four robbers decamped with the booty. Sub-inspector Arun Paigude fired at the suspects, but missed the target.
Apart from Darshan, Qazi, constables Bharat More and Borkar sustained serious injuries. All of them were admitted to a private hospital.

The other policemen — Malwe, Bablu Londhe, AM Shaikh, NB Madne, Atul Mali and sub-inspector Arun Paigude — also had a scuffle with the suspects.

In the morning, city police commissioner Meeran Chadha-Borwankar visited the injured at the hospital.
She said Darshan’s medical expenses would be borne by the city police, as a gesture of his brave act.

According to the police, the suspects were armed with iron rods and wooden batons and katawani (an ‘L’ shaped heavy iron rod).