In Satara, police arrested two men, a police sub-inspector and a software professional, on Saturday, 25th October, in relation to the suicidal death of a 28-year-old government doctor working at Maharashtra’s Phaltan subdistrict hospital. The two men are facing serious accusations of rape and pushing her to end her life.
The investigation began when a suicide note written on the doctor’s palm was found, mentioning specifically software engineer Prashant Bankar and the sub-inspector Gopal Badane as the cause of her decision. Based on this note and other evidence, such as WhatsApp chats, the police registered an FIR under the new Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) laws, specifically Section 64 (rape) and Section 108 (abetment of suicide). As per the allegations, sub-inspector Gopal Badane raped her several times, and her landlords son Prashant Bankar was mentally harassing her. Badane has also been suspended.
However, now one of the accused have made counter allegations against the victim. According to the TOI reports, Prashant Bankar’s family has a very different version of the story. His sister and brother asserted that he was not arrested at a Pune farmhouse, as some reports claimed, but that they had called him and told him to surrender at their house in Phaltan. The family asserts the techie is innocent and that, instead, it was the doctor who “used to call him repeatedly and harass him.”
The doctor had been renting a room in Bankar’s family house for the last year for a monthly amount of Rs 4,000. Bankar’s sister said that her brother had visited Phaltan a month ago to recover from dengue, and the doctor treated him. They exchanged phone numbers after that.
She claims that about 15 days ago, the doctor proposed marriage to him, but he had rejected the proposal. The man also alleged that the doctor had harassed him, demanding that he marry her and have a physical relationship with her.
According to police, the techie was taken into custody on Saturday morning, while the sub-inspector surrendered late at night. The court has ordered Prashant Bankar to be held in police custody for four days, until 28th October, for further interrogation. Investigators are now analysing a large number of chat conversations and call recordings between the doctor and the accused, in which she reportedly spoke about being under stress and pressure.
Satara Superintendent of Police, Tushar Doshi, said they are also investigating if the sub-inspector, who is from the same district as the doctor, had any previous relationship with her. SP Doshi added that it is a challenging case as the doctor did not complain earlier.
He said, “A woman committed suicide, and there might be some truth to her allegations. We are attempting to corroborate everything.” He said all technical evidence will be verified, and the investigation will determine if there was any angle of blackmail.
