5 cops responsible for Badlapur accused’s death in custody: Probe

A magistrate's inquiry has held five policemen responsible for the custodial death of Akshay Shinde, accused in the Badlapur school sexual assault case.

The magistrate on Monday submitted the inquiry report to the Bombay High Court, which was hearing a plea by Shinde's father, Anna Shinde, claiming his son was killed by the police in a fake encounter.

Akshay, 24, was arrested in August 2024 for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls in the toilet of a school in Badlapur. He was an attendant at the school.

In September, Shinde was killed in an alleged police shootout while being taken from the Taloja prison for questioning.

The police claimed he snatched the gun of one of the police personnel in the police van, opened fire, and was killed in retaliatory firing.

Under the law, a magistrate inquiry is initiated in cases where an accused dies in police custody.

A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale perused the report.

The bench said the magistrate had concluded that five police personnel present in the van were responsible for the accused's death.

The bench noted that as per law, an FIR would now be registered against the five policemen, and an investigation carried out.

The court asked public prosecutor Hiten Venegaonkar to inform the bench in two weeks as to which probe agency would investigate the case.