Kalyan: Padgha police early on Thursday registered an FIR against Narendra Pawar, former
BJP MLA from Kalyan West, and Shailesh Patil, a dismissed policeman, for allegedly gang-raping a 22-year-old woman at a farmhouse in Bhiwandi taluka.
According to the FIR, the woman, a resident of Kalyan, recently approached Pawar seeking his mediation in a dispute she had with her husband. She alleged that on Sept 12 (Saturday), Pawar called her to his office in Kalyan on the pretext of helping to resolve the dispute and subsequently took her to a farmhouse at Bapgaon in Bhiwandi taluka.
The woman alleged that there, Patil threatened her with a firearm and forced her to consume alcohol, after which Pawar sexually assaulted her. She further alleged that Pawar later left the farmhouse, after which Patil sexually assaulted her. She was later taken back to her home around 4 am by Patil’s domestic caretaker, she stated.
Pawar termed the charges as “false” and resigned from all organisational posts held by him in the BJP following registration of the FIR.
The complainant told the police that at the farmhouse, after sensing she was in danger, she discreetly recorded stuff on her mobile phone, capturing material related to the incident.
Traumatised and fearful, on Sept 16 (Wednesday), the woman said, she contacted Kanchan Kulkarni, Congress group leader in the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation, via Instagram. Kulkarni said the woman shared videos and text messages with her. After reviewing the material, Kulkarni accompanied her to Padgha police station late Wednesday night.
Kulkarni said she also informed state DGP Sadanand Date about the complaint and the evidence shared by the woman. On Date’s directives, Padgha police registered the FIR after verifying the woman’s complaint.
The two accused have been booked under provisions related to gang-rape, criminal intimidation and use of a weapon, among other charges. Further investigation is underway.
Kulkarni demanded the accused be arrested within 48 hours. She also claimed Patil had earlier faced criminal cases, including allegations involving a sexual assault on a foreign national and extortion, and was subsequently dismissed from the police force. Police have not yet disclosed details of any earlier cases.
Meanwhile, Pawar sent a letter to state BJP president Ravindra Chavan requesting that his resignation from party posts be accepted. Pawar was serving as Maharashtra president of the BJP’s Bhatke Vimukta Aghadi.
In his resignation letter, Pawar described the case registered against him as false and alleged a conspiracy had been hatched to defame him. He said he was stepping down so that the allegations and the controversy surrounding them would not affect BJP’s image.
A prominent BJP face in Kalyan, Pawar was elected MLA from Kalyan West in 2014 when BJP and Shiv Sena contested the assembly polls separately. In 2019, when the two parties fought the election in an alliance, the seat went to Shiv Sena, which fielded Vishwanath Bhoir. Pawar then contested as an independent and lost. He later returned to BJP and held organisational responsibilities in the party.
Police officials said the allegations were being investigated and further action will be taken based on evidence collected during the probe.
