Navi Mumbai: A 24-year-old auto rickshaw driver, his brother, and their three friends have been arrested by Nerul police for verbally abusing and assaulting an assistant motor vehicle inspector with Vashi Deputy RTO, who was in plain clothes, after an argument as the auto driver refused to ferry him on meter reading and demanded fixed 'exorbitant' fare for plying from Nerul to Ulwe.
The incident occured near LP bridge, Nerul on the Sion-Panvel highway on Monday around 5.45 am. The key accused auto driver was unaware that the passenger was an RTO inspector as he was attired in casual wear and wearing slippers, since he had returned from his native place in Sangli and alighting from the bus on the highway, he caught the auto rickshaw to reach his Ulwe home, informed the police.
Those arrested are the key accused Om Naravane (24), his sibling Shubham Naravane (20), both auto rickshaw drivers residing in Shiravane village in sector-1, Nerul and their three friends Nitin Sonawane (27), also an auto rickshaw driver, Amit Sakpal (23), both residing at Shivaji Nagar, Turbhe MIDC and Samshuddin Mulani (23) from Shiravane village. The police have invoked BNS sections against the accused for voluntarily causing grievous hurt by using dangerous weapons or means, unlawful assembly and punishment for basic mischief.
API Nilesh Shewale said, "On Monday around 5.45 am, the complainant Tushar Kadam (33) residing in Ulwe had boarded an auto rickshaw near LP bridge to reach his Ulwe residence, when the auto driver Om Naravane demanded a fixed fare and refused to ply on meter reading.
As Kadam insisted that he will pay the fare as per the meter reading, an argument ensured between them and Naravane hurled expletives at Kasam. Naravane then contacted his brother and their friends over mobile and called them at the spot. As they reached the spot, all five of them assaulted Kadam by kicking and raining fist blows. They made him to do sit-ups and seek forgiveness that they recorded on mobile and threatened to make his video viral on social media."
API Shewale added, "Kadam has claimed that while he was being assaulted by the accused, his gold chain got misplaced. When Kadam told them that he was an RTO official, the assailants sped away. From Naravane's auto rickshaw's registration number, we arrested him from Shiravane village and he revealed that names of his four aides who were also arrested from Nerul. On Tuesday, the five accused were produced before the Belapur JMFC court that remanded them to police custody till Thursday."
