Dhule deputy tehsildar Eshwar Rane, who was thrashed by local Shiv Sena leaders and later arrested by the police on Thursday for sexually exploiting women on the pretext of providing financial assistance under the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Anudan Yojana, was produced in the chief judicial court on Friday and remanded to four days in police custody.
Speaking to The Asian Age from Dhule, police sub-inspector Hanumanth Zimbal, who was present during the court’s proceedings, said, “The proceedings went on for about half -an-hour and we demanded Rane’s police custody.”
He said that the video clip, which shows Rane accepting `57,000 from Sena women’s wing leader Hemlata Hemade and BJP’s Nasim, was handed over to the court. “The clip also shows Rane counting the money and touching Ms Hemade inappropriately. He, however, claims that he had returned the amount. There is clear evidence against him, but we will leave no stone unturned and investigate the matter from all possible angles. The local leaders did not lodge a complaint right after recording his act on camera,” said Mr Zimbal.
“I have seen the clip, but the clip is still with the superiors. Further investigations would depend on its revelations,” said Mr Zimbal.
Seizing an opportunity, local Sena leaders pounced on Rane and beat him up after he visited the collector’s office with his daughter’s wedding invitation.
Rane, on the other hand, lodged a complaint against local Sena leaders. “On his complaint, we registered a case against local leaders under Sections 143, 323, 342, 504 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code,” he added.