Session court rejects bail of university's tainted faculty

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

The sessions court judge Varsha Pargaonkar has rejected the anticipatory bail application of the tainted professor of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University (Bamu), Ashok Gurappa Bandgar (43) and his wife Pallavi (35, residents of Vidyut Colony). Begumpura police have booked the duo for sexually exploiting a research girl student staying as paying guest in their house under Sections 376 (2) (N), 109, 114, 504 and 506 of IPC.

The duo is missing since the registration of a police case against them. They had applied for pre-arrest bail. Accordingly, the hearing upon it was held recently. The additional district government pleader Satish Mundwadkar brought to the notice of the court that the crime defames the pious relation of a teacher and a student. It has come to notice that the teacher took advantage of her poor financial condition. Since the case got unearthed, the Bandgar couple has locked the house and is absconding. Meanwhile, the police investigation and the compilation of evidence is underway.

Bandgar threatened the victim and her relatives by visiting her native village of the victim after the filing of the case. Hence the victim lodged a complaint with Nandura (Buldhana) police station. Meanwhile, there is a strong resentment amongst students against Bandgar as he was a faculty. Hence it is feared that law and order issues could emerge if the students launched an agitation. If the bail is granted to them then it may convey a wrong impression in the society. Hence Adv Mundwadkar brought to the notice of the court that it is the need of the hour to grant police custody remand (PCR) to the accused to get the facts and details of the crime.

The lawyer representing the accused requested to grant the bail giving references of the verdicts aired by the Supreme Court and the High Court in similar cases. After hearing the arguments of both sides, the court then rejected the pre-arrest bail plea of Bandgar.