Shrikrushna MhetreA traffic policeman who stopped a mini-truck, travelling at a high speed on the wrong side of the road, was dragged for around two kilometres holding on to the window of the front passenger seat as the driver tried to flee. Some local residents managed to stop the truck and rescue the injured policeman.
The incident took place on Saturday evening at Markal Chowk, where 49-year-old assistant sub-inspector Shrikrushna Mhetre, posted with the Dighi traffic division, was on duty. Around 6.30 pm, he spotted a mini-truck moving at a high speed on the wrong side of the road. He waved at the driver to stop.
In his statement to the police, Mhetre said, “I sat in the front passenger seat and asked the driver to take the vehicle to the Dighi traffic division station. But when we reached the station and I was getting down, the driver stepped on the accelerator and tried to flee. I held on to the window as he drove towards Vadgaon. I could not jump off as the vehicle was at a high speed, so I clung to the door. The driver even tried to push me off the vehicle. I was dragged for about two kilometres. He stopped only after some people intercepted the mini-truck with another vehicle and the driver saw police approaching the scene.”
The driver has been identified as Kisan Haribhau Daundkar of Sangamwadi Kalus. Sub-inspector Dattatray Shinde, who is probing the case, said, “The driver has been arrested and charged with kidnapping, obstructing a public servant, voluntarily hurting a public servant and rash and negligent driving. He has been remanded in police custody for two days.”
