Dattatraya Gade (37), the accused arrested in the Swargate rape case, has filed for bail before the Pune Sessions Court, arguing that he was arrested by the Pune police just under the social media pressure and that he had not raped the victim. Gade, represented by advocate Wajed Khan, claimed in his application that his photos were widely circulated on social media after the incident, which led to the police filing an FIR against him without substantial evidence. He further argued that he is a simple vegetable vendor in Pune and had no involvement in the alleged crime.
The court has heard the application and has asked the prosecution to file its reply on April 8.
The grounds mentioned by Gade in his application claims, “The accused claims that the alleged incident occurred during a busy hour at Swargate bus station, making it impossible for such an offence to take place unnoticed. The entire area of Swargate Bus Station is under CCTV surveillance, yet the police till now have not submitted any footage before the court or shared it with the defense, which could either prove or disprove the allegations.
Advocate Khan in his argument further mentioned that the victim is a frequent traveler to Phaltan, and buses for Phaltan depart every hour, thus there was no reason for the victim to ask the accused, a stranger, about bus availability when she was familiar with the schedule. ”According to the victim’s statement, the accused locked two doors of the bus before committing the crime. However, Shiv Shahi AC buses have only one door, raising doubts about the accuracy of the complaint.”
The bail application also tries to say that there was a consensual relation between the accused and the victim, which the victim has allegedly claimed to be rape.
According to police reports, the 26-year-old victim was waiting for a bus to Phaltan at Swargate Bus Station around 5:45 a.m. on Tuesday. The accused, Dattatraya Ramdas Gade, allegedly approached her, falsely claiming that the bus to Satara was at another platform. He then led her to an empty Shiv Shahi AC bus, convincing her to board despite her hesitation. Once inside, he allegedly locked the bus and raped her before fleeing the scene.
