Leader Supriya Sule has strongly condemned the Pune bus rape case and urged the Maharashtra government to ensure speedy justice for the victim. Calling it a “horrible and very painful incident,” she expressed disappointment over the government’s handling of the case.
“I condemn the incident and expect very strong reactions and actions from the government, but exactly the opposite happened. The government has been very insensitive to the victim, and some very shocking statements have come from the government,” Sule told media on Monday.
She urged Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who is also the state’s Home Minister, to fast-track the case and ensure the accused receives the strictest punishment. “I urge the Chief Minister to make sure that this case is on the fast track and that this man should be hung,” she said.
The Pune Crime Branch has detained the accused, Dattatray Ramdas Gade, at the Swargate bus depot. He was found in a village in Shirur Tehsil after absconding since the incident on Tuesday.
The crime took place when the victim, waiting for a bus to return home to Phaltan, was misled by the accused, who falsely claimed that her bus was parked elsewhere. He then led her to a parked MSRTC Shivshahi bus at the depot, where he allegedly raped her.
In response to the incident, Maharashtra State Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik has ordered an immediate security audit of all bus stands and depots across the state to prevent such crimes in the future.