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Journalism of Courage
Nearly three weeks after his autorickshaw was stolen during the Ganesh festival in the city, Vishnu Kumbhar, 38, a resident of Dighi in Pimpri Chinchwad, was reunited with it following an investigation by the Pune police which helped to track it down.
“I am happy to get back my autorickshaw, my bread and butter. Since it was stolen, it became difficult for me and my family to manage our daily expenses. We used our savings and received support from our friends and relatives to survive. I used to meet the police daily, to know if they found my vehicle so that I could earn money for my family…. I was losing hope, but the officers finally arrested the thief. I am thankful to the police and Ganpati Bappa,” Kumbhar said.
Kumbhar said that on August 31, the first day of the festival, his wife and two children insisted that they wanted to see the Ganesh mandals in the city.
“All of us came to the Shaniwar Wada area in my autorickshaw around 10 pm on August 31. As the road was closed further, I parked the autorickshaw near the outgate of Shaniwar Wada. We visited the famous Manache Ganpati, Shrimant Dagdusheth Halwai Ganpati and also enjoyed watching the decorations of a few more Ganesh mandals,” he recalled.
“When we returned to the Shaniwar Wada outgate around 1 am on September 1, my autorickshaw was missing. I searched for it in the areas nearby, but failed to trace the vehicle. I then reported it to the police and returned home disturbed,” Kumbhar said.
Based on his complaint, the Vishrambag police lodged a First Information Report (FIR) against an unidentified person. A probe was launched as per the directions of Krushikesh Rawale, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), and Sainath Thombre, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP).
A team comprising Police Inspector Arun Ghodke, Assistant Police Inspector Rajesh Usgaonkar, along with policemen Ganesh Kathe, Amol Bhosale, Rahul More, Ashish Kharat, Anil Shaikh, Arjun Thorat, Nitin Babar, Sagar More and Shiva Gaikwad checked over 50 CCTV cameras around the crime scene and other locations in the city.
While working on the leads obtained, More confirmed the involvement of a history sheeter Siddharam Tukaram Shinde, 30, in the theft. “We laid a trap and nabbed Shinde from Bajirao Road on September 16. The stolen autorickshaw was recovered from him,” said Usgaonkar, Assistant Police Inspector.
“Shinde is a native of Solapur and currently resides in Pune’s Hadapsar area. He was booked in two cases of thefts previously too,” said Vijaymala Pawar, Senior Police Inspector. Officers said Shinde allegedly took advantage of the crowd to steal the autorickshaw. After completing the legal formalities, Vishrambag police handed over the vehicle to Kumbhar on Friday afternoon.
He, however, noted that the autorickshaw had sustained damaged. “Its battery is missing. The music system, some wires, glass, and some spare parts are broken. However, I am relieved to get it back. I purchased it in 2019 and since then it has been my only source of income,” Kumbhar said.
“Shinde is now in jail. Further investigation is on,” Pawar said.
