Pune rape case: How cops hunted down Swargate rapist

In a major breakthrough Pune City police arrested Dattatray Ramdas Gade in the early hours of Friday from his village Gunat in Shirur Taluka approximately 100 km from Pune Gadersquos detention took place around 130 am following an extensive threeday search operation involving hundreds of police personnel The 36yearold accused who has a history of criminal offences had been on the run since Tuesday morning after allegedly raping a 26yearold health counsellor inside a Shivshahi bus parked at Swargate ST bus terminusDattatray Gade the accusedThe police launched the manhunt immediately tracing his last location to Gunat village To expedite Gadersquos capture eight dedicated police teams were formed and a reward of Rs 1 lakh was announced for information leading to his arrestAccording to police records Gade has been involved in at least six criminal cases over the past five years including theft robbery and chainsnatching in Ahilyanagar Shikrapur and Shirur in Maharashtra In January 2024 he was arrested at Swargate bus terminus for attempting to snatch a mobile phone but was later released He had been out on bail since 2019 in another theft caseThe Manhunt Over 100 police personnel and drones are deployed across Pune district during a 75hour chase for Dattatray Gade in villages near Shirur IllustrationsUday MohiteAs the police intensified their search Gade attempted suicide twice to avoid being caught Officials revealed that he initially tried to hang himself from a tree in a field near his village but the rope broke saving his life Later he reportedly searched for poison or pesticides but was unsuccessful in obtaining themFollowing Gadersquos arrest Pune Commissioner of Police Amitesh Kumar announced ldquoStrict measures have been implemented to prevent similar incidents in the future Security audits have been initiated at isolated areas bus stands railway stations and other highrisk spots The Pune municipal corporation and transport authorities will be installing additional streetlights to eliminate dark zones and enhance womenrsquos safetyrdquoThe TipOff A thirsty Gade arrives at a relativersquos house at 1030 pm expressing repentance to his relatives He takes a bottle of water and disappears in the sugarcane fields again His relatives alert policeA case has been registered against Gade at Swargate police station under Sections 64 rigorous imprisonment of minimum 10 years up to life and 3512 criminal intimidation of BNS The police are also investigating his political connections as reports suggest he was associated with a local MLArsquos party workCP Kumar thanked the villagers of Gunat for their cooperation in tracking down the accused ldquoThe accused was detained from Gunat village at 130 am Nearly 500 officers and personnel were working on the case for the past three days Around 400500 villagers actively assisted in the searchrdquo he said The police used dog squads and drone cameras to track Gadersquos movements Kumar added that efforts are being made to build a watertight case against Gade and to ensure a fasttracked trialldquoAs the preliminary investigation was underway a R1 lakh award was announced for those who helped us trace the accused We will be awarding the amount to the person who informed us that Gade came to his house for a drink of water It was a crucial time in the investigation and the search operation was successful because of his call We will visit the village again and try to help the locals as best we can The whole village helped us in the combing operation Some used their twowheelers to search the areardquo Kumar saidA technical analysis of Gadersquos mobile phone data over the past two months revealed that he would remain at his village home during the day and then travel to Shivajinagar Shirur and Swargate bus stands in Pune at night It also came to light that he had repeatedly attempted to gain the trust of girls by engaging them in talks and collecting their phone numbersThe Chase Police use a dog squad to track him through the sugarcane fields near a canal after finding his shirtAs per the police Gade isnrsquot financially sound His wife a sportsperson has appeared for the police recruitment examination He has an 8yearold son and both of his parents worked on a farm Gade has one brotherFollowing his detention Gade was brought to Pune by 2 am He was sent for a medical examination and formally arrested Gade was produced before the Pune Shivajinagar Court on Friday evening which sent him to 12 days in police custody The police said that a special counsel will be appointed and the case will be fasttracked Additionally efforts are being made to prevent such incidents in futureThe Capture Gade is finally spotted hiding in the canal police swiftly arrest him and bring him to PuneIn response to the incident a highlevel meeting was held at the Pune District Collectorrsquos office on Friday chaired by Maharashtra State Womenrsquos Commission Chairperson Rupali Chakankar and District Collector Jitendra Dudi The meeting included officials from Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Ltd PMPML Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation MSRTC Pune Police and the Pune Municipal Corporation to discuss safety measures at bus stationsKey decisions takengtgt Removal of abandoned buses by April 15gtgt To upgrade of lsquoHirkanirsquo womenrsquos safety roomsgtgt To establish dedicated womenrsquos safety help desksgtgt An increase in lsquoPink Autorsquo autorickshaws for women commutersgtgt Creation of separate parking zones for busesgtgt CCTV cameras at all bus depots and inside busesgtgt lsquo112rsquo and lsquo1098rsquo helpline nos to be displayed prominentlygtgt Strengthened police patrolDamini squads for womenrsquos safetyAs Pune Police is tightening security and moving for a swift prosecution of Gade the authorities have assured that stringent measures will be implemented to prevent such crimes in future