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Journalism of Courage
A DEEPENING rift within the family of Pune’s notorious gangster Bandu Andekar over the 68-year-old patriarch’s illicit wealth and control of his criminal stronghold is suspected to be the central reason behind the murder of his two family members –his son Vanraj Andekar and his grandson Ayush Komkar — one year apart, said senior police officers. This family feud is fueled by two factions of the once-undivided Andekar gang, probe has revealed.
Vanraj (40) was shot dead near his Nana Peth residence on September 1, 2024. Vanraj’s sister Sanjivani Komkar, her husband Jayant, Ayush’s father Ganesh Komkar (who is Jayant’s brother and husband of Kalyani— Vanraj’s other sister) and history-sheeter Somnath Sayaji Gaikwad were among those arrested for Vanraj’s murder. Police said following a previous dispute, the Komkars had allegedly conspired to kill Vanraj with the help of Gaikwad, a former henchman of the Andekar gang who later became a rival.
On September 5 this year, Ayush (18) was allegedly shot multiple times by two gunmen in the parking lot of his residential building in Bhavani Peth in what is suspected to be an act of revenge for the murder of Vanraj, who is gangster Bandu Andekar’s son. Ayush was the son of Bandu Andekar’s daughter Kalyani Komkar, whose husband Ganesh Komkar is a key accused in Vanraj’s murder.
These two murders—an year apart—point to a clear rift in the family led by Suryakant alias Bandu Ranoji Andekar, which had deep links to criminal activities and also politics. The roots of Andekar family’s links to criminal activities can be traced back to Bandu’s elder brother Balkrishna alias Balu who rose to notoriety in the 1970 and 80s by running a gang in the central parts of Pune. Bandu took over the reins after Balu was murdered on the premises of Pune court in July 1984 by a rival gang.
“The gang led by Bandu Andekar has been involved in various criminal activities including collection of protection money or ‘hafta’ from small businesses and extorting larger ones. They were also involved in gambling dens. Soon the gang also entered in land and property deals using muscle power. The family has acquired film theatres, commercial and residential properties, and has stakes in various types of contracts,” said a senior police officer who has worked in the Pune crime branch.
The Andekar family entered politics in the 1990s with Bandu’s brothers Udaykant and Ramakant becoming corporators in the Pune Municipal Corporation. Vatsala Andekar from the became mayor of Pune in the last 1990s and Bandu’s wife Rajashree was also elected corporator. Vanraj, Bandu’s elder son, won the civic elections in 2017 on an NCP ticket.
“Our probe suggests that there is a deepening rift in the Andekar family. It needs to be noted that Bandu Andkar’s two sons — Vanraj and younger son Krushnaraj and one of his three daughters
Vrundavani Nilanjay Wadekar—have been having growing hostilities with families of two other daughters Kalyani and Sanjivani who are married to Komkar brothers Ganesh and Jayant respectively. At the core of this hostolity is the dispute over Bandu Andekar’s illicit wealth and his criminal stronghold that continues to generate dirty money. This family hostility is worsened because the two sides are supported by the two factions of the once-undivided Andekar gang. For example, Somnath Gaikwad who was once a member of Andekar gang, is now with Komkars. It was Gaikwad’s family which was the target of a revenge attack planned by Andekar’s, which was foiled by the police,” said a senior police officer.
“We have to understand that the murdered youth is the grandson of the main accused who is a gangster. Thus, gangwar might not be the most accurate word to describe this murder. It is an internal power struggle, which is given muscle by the two factions of an old gang,” added the officer.
