The Supreme Court last week directed the police to launch a probe into a case of assault filed against NCP MLA Jitendra Awhad by Thane resident, Anant Karmuse, who alleged that Awhad had him assaulted at his house in 2020 over a social media against the former Maharashtra minister.
The SC bench comprising Justices MR Shah and CT Ravikumar heard a plea filed by Karmuse against the NCP MLA. He claimed that on April 5, 2020, he was viciously attacked by a group of thugs who were reportedly acting under the direction of Awhad, the then-state housing minister. Despite Awhad’s arrest by the Thane police, he was granted bail on the same day. Karmuse approached the SC after the Bombay HC declined to transfer the investigation to the CBI, and the bench was hearing his case.
While the Supreme Court had turned down Karmuse’s request for a CBI inquiry into the matter, the apex court has nevertheless asked the police to launch an expeditious probe into the matter.
According to the SC order, “the current appeal has partially succeeded, as the Bombay HC’s decision not to order a CBI investigation has been upheld. However, the decision to disallow further investigation has been overturned. The court has instructed that a prompt and thorough investigation should be conducted, and a report should be submitted to the trial court in accordance with the law, so that the accused may be tried on the basis of merit.”
‘When I became unconscious from beating, they woke me up, just to continue the assault’: Anant Karmuse in interview
In his interview following the Supreme Court’s decision to direct the police to launch a probe into the assault case, Anant Karmuse said he has full faith in the Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis-led government in Maharashtra to get him justice. He explained in detail the sequence of events on the fateful night of 5 April 2020, when police officers took him to Jitendra Awhad’s residence where he was brutally assaulted for a social media post against the NCP leader.
“I was picked up by police officers from my residence on the pretext of being taken to the police station. But I was taken to Jitendra Awhad’s residence where 15-20 goons began beating me. I was not told why I was assaulted nor was I provided with an opportunity to explain myself. They thrashed me with sticks, iron rods, belts, and whatever things they could use to assault a man,” Karmuse said.
The victim further alleged that when he got unconscious from the beating, he was woken up, just to beat him again.
“When I told them I wanted to end the matter and assured them that I would not pursue a case against them, they threatened me with filing a case against me. I told them I am a family man and I don’t want to indulge in court matters, but they said that they would file a case against me and put me behind the bars for at least 3 years. It was then, in that very moment, I had resolved to legally pursue a case against Awhad come what may.” Karmuse said.
Karmuse also added that he was forced to apologise, a video of which was recorded by Awhad’s henchmen, and then used to file a case against him.
In fact, when Karmuse approached the police station to file a case against Jitendra Awhad and his aide for assault, he was made to sit the entire night in the police station with his hands plastered and suffering due to the injuries caused by the beating.
“After the beating when I went to the police station to file a case against Jitendra Awhad and his henchmen, the police officers seemed unbothered to file a case against them, even though they saw my condition and injuries on my body. I was made to sit the entire night in the police station with my hands plastered amid excruciating pain just to file a case against my tormenter,” Karmuse said.
Karmuse also asserted that when he approached the police after his assault, he was treated like a hardened criminal and not a victim. “When I went to the police, they treated me as if I was a serial killer with multiple offences under my name. They used to call me for questioning and made to sit for 3 to 5 hours in the police station.”
“Jitendra Awhad was a politician drunk on power. He acts as if he’s a law unto himself. Whether it is my abduction or the fracas at the Viviana Mall or others who attacked Ketaki Chitale and other such hooliganism cases related to Jitendra Awhad, you will find the same goons involved in it,” he added.
In a scathing critique of the Supreme Court bail order for Jitendra Awhad, Karmuse said, “Supreme Court said the accused should be treated as a common man until proven guilty. Does a common man get bail so fast?”
FIR against Jitendra Awhad for assaulting a man over social media post
The case dates back to April 2020 when an FIR was lodged at Vartak Nagar police station against Maharashtra cabinet minister Jitendra Awhad by a resident of Thane, alleging that two police constables and goons allegedly associated with Maharashtra minister and NCP strongman Jitendra Awhad had brutally assaulted him.
As per the FIR, around 11.50 pm on April 5, two policemen came to his house. The policemen asked him to come to the police station. The victim was not informed of why he was being taken to the police station. Why the victim’s wife enquired why is her husband being taken to the police station, and the policemen responded that it is general interrogation and they would return him within 10 minutes.
Thereafter, the policemen took the victim in their white Scorpio to NCP MLA Jitendra Awhad’s Nath Bungalow situated near Viviana Mall. He was frisked and the policemen had taken away his mobile phone.
The victim claims that Jitendra Awhad was present at his bungalow and a posse of 15-20 goons was already there to beat him up. He was then mercilessly assaulted by the goons under the watch of Awhad until their wooden sticks broke off, the victim has alleged in the FIR.
After that, Awhad approached the badly injured victim and questioned him why did he make the offensive post. The young man then apologised to Awhad and said that out of enthusiasm, he uploaded the post. Awhad then called up the young man’s house and asked his wife to remove the contentious post.
However, the young man was still not released even after apologising. He was assaulted again and a video of him admitting that he had made the post by mistake and being apologetic about it was recorded. The policemen later took him to the hospital for treatment, the complaint had said.
After being treated at the hospital, the young man went to the Vartak Nagar police station where the police lodged a complaint against unknown assaulters. At the same time, a case was booked against the victim under the IT act.
