Palghar lynching case: Three police personnel dismissed from service; 154 people arrested over incident

Palghar: Three police personnel have been dismissed from service in connection with the Palghar mob lynching case in Maharashtra, a senior official said on Sunday. These police personnel include assistant police inspector Anandrao Kale, who was in-charge of Kasa Police Station in Palghar when the incident took place on 16 April, the official said. Two others are assistant sub-inspector Ravi Salunke and constable Naresh Dhodi, he said. “The Inspector General (IG) of Police, Konkan Range dismissed the trio from service through an order issued on Saturday,” the official added. These three police personnel, along with their five other colleagues, had been placed under suspension following the incident, he said. Two seers and their driver were lynched by a mob at Gadchinchale village in Palghar on 16 April when they were travelling in a car to Surat (Gujarat) to attend a funeral amid the coronavirus-induced lockdown. The victims were identified by the police as Chikne Maharaj Kalpavrukshagiri (70), Sushil Giri Maharaj (35) and their driver Nilesh Telgade (30). The brutal mob attack took place amid rumours that child-lifters were roaming in the area. As many as 154 people have been arrested and 11 juveniles detained in connection with the incident. The accused in the case were charged with murder, armed rioting and using criminal force to prevent a public servant from doing his duty, among other offences, police said. The case was later handed over to the Maharashtra Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for the probe. It has filed three charge sheets in the case. After the incident caused an uproar, the state government had suspended Kale, under whose jurisdiction the crime took place, and seven other policemen. Besides, over 35 police constables and personnel of other ranks were transferred in the wake of the mob attack. The government had also sent the then Palghar district police chief, Gaurav Singh, on forced leave.