By Arshad Shaikh
PUNE: A shocking incident of sexual assault came to light in a nursery school run by the Adarsh Vidya Prasarak Sanstha (AVPS) Badlapur in Thane district of Maharashtra where a 23-year male attendant, Akshay Shinde, allegedly assaulted two four-year-old girls in the school’s washroom on August 12 and 13.
The accused, who was allegedly mentally unstable had been married thrice in the last two years and has a five-month pregnant wife, was arrested on August 17 after an FIR was lodged on August 16.
The incident sparked widespread outrage, with thousands of people from Mumbai and Thane taking to the streets and blocking local trains in protest. As this incident occurred immediately after the rape of a 31-year-old female postgraduate trainee doctor at R. G. Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, the case became high-profile with the national media reporting on it continuously.
Taking suo moto cognizance of the crime, a division bench of the Bombay High Court expressed shock and concern, criticizing the school authorities for not reporting the incident and the police for their delays in handling the case. The court came down heavily on the police, asking “Unless there is a strong public outburst, machinery won’t move. Won’t the state move till public outbursts like this?”
Accused killed in police encounter
Maharashtra DGP Rashmi Shukla tweeted, “We will leave no stone unturned in delivering justice to innocent children and their families.” A Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by Inspector General of Police (IGP) Aarti Singh was formed to probe the case. Just when the storm seemed to be settling, news broke out that Akshay Shinde had been killed in a police encounter while he was being taken from Taloja jail to the Thane Crime Branch office in Badlapur for interrogation on September 23.
It was reported that Akshay snatched Assistant Police Inspector Nilesh More’s revolver and fired at him. In response, Senior Police Inspector Sanjay Shinde shot Akshay in self-defence, leading to his death from the injuries.
Public outrage against Akshay Shinde had grown to the point where there were demands for him to be handed over to the mob or hanged. The level of anger in people can be gauged by the fact that the authorities had to undergo a week-long struggle to secure a burial site for Akshay. He was finally laid to rest in the Shanti Nagar crematorium in Ulhasnagar but not before intense opposition from local political leaders and residents. The burial was further delayed as large crowds gathered, with protestors insisting that Shinde should not be buried in their locality.
Police face criticism after the encounter
Given the high-profile nature of the Badlapur case and the upcoming state assembly elections, political accusations regarding the encounter are inevitable. Opposition parties have questioned whether the encounter was staged to protect someone. Congress leader and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan told the media, “This is a clear-cut case of a fake encounter. All the claims being made through the police by the government that the accused opened fire on scores of policemen escorting him are simply laughable. Were the police sleeping in the vehicle around 6.15 pm when the incident happened? Couldn’t they overpower him when he tried to make some movements? Anyway, the weapons that police carry at such times are locked, and only they know how to unlock them. Therefore, all of these things raise serious doubts about the encounter.”
Sanjay Raut who is the Shiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson, said, “An accused who is to work as a sweeper snatches a revolver strapped to the waist of a policeman and in the presence of his colleagues. The revolver was a locked one but he still managed to fire it. How is it possible? Can anyone believe in this theory? When did sweeper learn the technique of firing from a revolver.”
However, ruling party leaders retorted that those demanding Akshay’s execution should not mourn his death in a police encounter. Countering the jibes of the opposition, BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar said, “After the incident came to light, the opposition was demanding that the accused should be given capital punishment. Now when the police fire at him in self-defence, the opposition is taking his side. The opposition does not seem to trust Maharashtra police. They sounded worried about the safety of the accused. The leaders of Maha Vikas Aghadi indulge in double talk.”
Judiciary raises questions over encounter
Akshay’s father, Anna Shinde has demanded a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into the death of his son, alleging Akshay Shinde was killed in a fake encounter. During the hearing, Justice Chavan of the Bombay High Court inquired whether the deceased knew how to unlock the pistol.
Representing the state government, Public Prosecutor Hiten Venegaonkar stated that the weapon was not locked, and the magazine was released when the deceased attempted to pull the upper portion. “This is very hard to believe. Have you ever fired a pistol any time? I have fired it 100 times. It requires strength… A layman cannot fire a pistol unless he is trained. It requires strength. A weak man cannot pull the slide back. There is a lanyard… attached to the pistol, was it there or not? Was there a lanyard to the pistol? Why was it not there? Why was it not locked? What is the SOP? What are the guidelines,” Justice Chavan asked.
The court noted that the post-mortem report indicated the bullet appeared to have been fired at point-blank range from a 9mm Browning pistol. “First you had to try to disarm him. What were you doing till he fired three bullets? He is not a hefty, tall man. You could have overpowered him. This can’t be termed as an encounter. The definition of an encounter is different. We expect the investigation to be done fairly and impartially even if the police are involved, and if it is not done, we will be constrained to pass orders. Don’t take it that we are suspecting, but we are doing it because we want the truth,” observed the Bench.
Was the encounter justice or revenge under public pressure?
The residents of Badlapur celebrated by bursting crackers and distributing sweets, praising this “instant justice” delivered by the police. The optics of celebrating an encounter as justice is extremely problematic. True justice does not involve revenge or distributing sweets after an encounter. Despite public outrage, a suspect’s life cannot be taken outside the legal framework. When this case first surfaced, enraged crowds called for Akshay’s public execution, expressing their outrage both inside and outside police stations. On social media, the encounter was lauded as “divine justice,” with politicians taking credit for delivering swift punishment. But the question lingers: was this truly justice, or a calculated act of revenge by those in power to quash rising dissent? Such encounters, often seen as shortcuts for resolving criminal cases, are becoming increasingly common. This trend, which turns police officers into instant heroes, blurs the line between justice and vigilantism. In 2019, after the horrific gang rape and murder of a young woman in Hyderabad, the accused were similarly killed in a police encounter, widely celebrated by the public as instant justice. However, true justice requires adherence to the law, not executions carried out by the police. In a civilized society, only the judiciary has the authority to deliver justice. While Akshay Shinde’s crimes were heinous, if the courts had sentenced him to death following a fair trial, and the punishment had been swiftly carried out, it might have eased some of the public’s anger. Sadly, today, guns and bulldozers are replacing the scales of justice, but the rule of law should not bend to public emotion or political expediency. As the saying goes, “Justice delayed is justice denied, but justice hurried is justice buried.” Yet, this principle seems to be forgotten. Public sentiment, political agendas, and opposition strategies have become so intertwined that true justice has been lost. The killing of Akshay Shinde should not be a cause for celebration but a moment for deep reflection.
