Mumbai News
Published on Jan 14, 2023 01:00 PM IST

Around 13 months after an MBBS student went missing in Bandra Bandstand, the crime branch on Friday arrested a lifeguard on the charge of kidnapping. The accused, Mittu Sukhdev Singh, was last seen with the girl and even clicked selfies with her.
Deputy commissioner of police Krishnakant Upadhyay said, “We have arrested Mittu Sukhdev Singh under sections 363 (kidnapping) and 364(E) (kidnapping for ransom) of the Indian Penal Code. He is not cooperating in the investigation, but we have sufficient evidence to probe him.”

The Nagpada police had earlier conducted Narco analysis and brain-mapping tests on him, but the reports were inconclusive, a police officer said.
Singh was picked up on Thursday night from Bandra and was brought to the local crime branch unit for questioning. He was arrested on Friday and later was produced before a court. He has been remanded in police custody till January 21.
Sadichha Sane, 22, was a third-year student at Sir JJ Hospital and Grant Medical College. She had on November 29, 2021, boarded a train at 9.58 am from Virar station and got off at Andheri as she was to appear for her prelims at 2 pm. Then she boarded another train and alighted at Bandra from where she took an auto to Bandstand.
Her mobile phone location indicated that she had kept on roaming around through the afternoon, the police officer said. “CCTV cameras captured Sane heading towards the seashore opposite Taj Lands’ End at 12.30 am.”
Singh, 32, the lifeguard on duty, spotted her and suspecting that she might attempt suicide, followed her. Noticing Singh, Sane told him that she was not there to end her life. Singh then started chatting with her and both sat on a rock till 3.30 am on November 30, 2021, the officer said.
During this nearly three-hour period, Singh had clicked four selfies with her, whereas Sane had taken one selfie with him, Singh said in his police statement. CCTV cameras had captured the cell phone screens blinking, indicating that selfies were taken, as well as one single beam of light, presumably from a cell phone torch, moving away from Bandstand around 3 am. However, due to insufficient lighting, it was not clear who it was, the officer said.
“As a lifeguard, Singh had phone numbers of policemen in his phone but he did not come forward to give a statement when the news of Sane’s disappearance broke. It was only after we zeroed in on him that he admitted he was with her and he was the last person to interact with her,” the police officer said.
A case of kidnapping was registered at Bandra police station on December 10, 2021. It was later transferred to Unit 9 of the crime branch.
The crime branch sleuths checked the CCTV footage but the 22-year-old was not seen anywhere returning from the seashore. Her mobile phone was also switched off, and there was no call, messages or internet activity thereafter.
The police had earlier questioned Singh many times. They had also questioned Sane’s friends, family, and relatives, people residing in Bandstand and surrounding areas, and over 100 auto drivers, but did not get a lead. Also, there was no transaction or withdrawal from her bank account after her disappearance.
The crime branch had also checked her WhatsApp messages, call records, and Instagram, Telegram and e-mail accounts, but did not find anything suspicious, the police officer said.


Satyajeet denies BJP move, Congress to act against rebellion.
Mumbai News
Published on Jan 14, 2023 01:05 PM IST

Satyajeet insisted that his allegiance to Congress remains strong, as he “loves its ideology and his family was going to complete 100 years as Congress loyalists in 2030”. However, as an Independent candidate, he is equally keen to contest the council polls and “seeking support from other political parties, including BJP”, to run unopposed
Mumbai: A day after he filed the nomination as an Independent candidate for the upcoming legislative council elections, Congress has declared Satyajeet Tambe a rebel candidate. On Friday, Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole indicated that the party would act against both Satyajeet and his father Sudhir Tambe, who was declared the party’s official candidate from the Nashik graduate constituency, but chose not to file his nomination.
Speculations of Satyajeet joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) continued to fly thick on Friday, especially since BJP decided not to field any candidate from the seat. It is believed that while Satyajeet had agreed to join BJP and contest the council polls, he faced opposition from his family, especially senior Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat, his maternal uncle. A Congress insider said, “Satyajeet is back in the fold of the family, after Thorat requested deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis not to break up the family.”

Satyajeet insisted that his allegiance to Congress remains strong, as he “loves its ideology and his family was going to complete 100 years as Congress loyalists in 2030”. However, as an Independent candidate, he is equally keen to contest the council polls and “seeking support from other political parties, including BJP”, to run unopposed.

Patole was however unforgiving, as he said, “I want to make it clear that the party will not support a rebel candidate. The election ticket was given to Sudhir Tambe but he chose not to contest the polls and allowed his son to file the nomination, which is akin to cheating the party.”

Patole said that the “party high command” was informed about the status-quo and that Satyajeet’s stand to “take support from all the parties including BJP” was like committing “fraud with Congress”.

Satyajeet, a former youth wing chief of Maharashtra Congress, helped his uncle Balasaheb Thorat, organising the Maharashtra leg of Bharat Jodo Yatra. Thorat was in-charge of the operations.

Satyajeet insisted that both Patole and Maharashtra in-charge H K Patil were informed that either he or his father would contest the council poll. “Hence, we requested them to send a blank AB form. Despite that my father’s candidature was declared by senior party leaders in Delhi,” he claimed. He argued that he filed his nomination as a Congress candidate but since no party, including Congress filed an official candidate, he was declared as an independent candidate.

“We have been Congress loyalists since 1930 when my great grandfather joined the party. None of us quit the party to join another, only to eventually return. I am still in love with Congress,” Satyajeet said, adding that it was not wrong to seek support from other parties to run unopposed in the elections as no one had fielded their official candidate.

“The party should give me an opportunity to clear the air before reaching any conclusion,” he said.

Senior party leaders are steadfast about taking action against Satyajeet. Ashok Chavan, former chief minister, said that it was a serious matter, which the high command must consider. “The official candidate did not file the nomination and his son filed as an independent candidate. The party will lose a seat in council,” said Chavan.

Patole said BJP was indulging in gross abuse of power in its desperate bid to break opposition leaders. “BJP has started breaking homes by threatening people. They are enjoying this today but they will understand the pain when the tables are turned,” said Patole.

“The grand old party needs to introspect about its state of affairs instead of accusing others. If they fail to do so, such incidents will continue to take place,” said senior BJP leader and forest minister Sudhir Mungantiwar.