Bombay HC Grants Bail to Convict Sachin Andure in Narendra Dabholkar Murder Case
The Bombay High Court on Tuesday granted bail to Sachin Andure, the second convict in the 2013 murder case of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar. The court observed that the evidence against the 38-year-old was weak and noted that there was a fair chance of his acquittal in his pending appeal.
A division bench of Justices Sarang Kotwal and Ranjitsinha Bhonsale suspended Andure's life sentence and ordered his release on a personal bond of Rs 50,000. The bench pointed out that Andure had remained in custody for roughly six years based on a very weak piece of evidence, even upon prima facie observation, without analysing the evidence in depth.
Dabholkar was shot dead on August 20, 2013, in Pune during his morning walk. The high court transferred the investigation from the Pune Crime Branch to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in May 2014, and the trial commenced in 2021. On May 10, 2024, special judge P P Jadhav convicted alleged shooters Andure and Sharad Kalaskar, sentencing them to life imprisonment, while acquitting three other accused, Dr Virendrasinh Tawde, lawyer Sanjiv Punalekar, and Vikram Bhave.
Andure had filed an application for release on bail pending the hearing and final disposal of his 2024 appeal. Senior advocate Niteen Pradhan, appearing with advocate Shubhada Khot for Andure, sought parity with Kalaskar, who had been granted bail by the high court on April 29, arguing that no reliable evidence existed against Andure.
The judges observed that the identification of Andure by eyewitnesses Kiran Kamble and Vinay Kelkar was extremely weak, as it took place nearly eight years and seven months, and nine years and three months, respectively, after the incident. The court also noted that no reasons were provided for the failure to conduct a test identification parade following Andure's arrest on August 18, 2018.
The bench further observed that an alleged extra-judicial confession made to witness Somnath Dhayade lacked corroboration. Dhayade had claimed Andure confessed to him 15 days after the murder, but disclosed this to the CBI five years later, well after Andure's arrest.
Additionally, the court highlighted that a ballistic report showed bullets recovered from Dabholkar's body matched test-fired bullets from country-made pistols received from police in Mumbra in September 2013, long before Andure's arrest, yet no further investigation was pursued in that direction.
