NEW DELHI: Bombay high court on Thursday granted Dilip Khedkar, father of former IAS officer Pooja Khedkar, anticipatory bail in kidnapping case.Earlier this week, a court in Navi Mumbai has rejected the anticipatory bail plea of dismissed IAS officer Puja Khedkar’s father, Dilip Khedkar.The case dates back to September 13, when a truck allegedly grazed Khedkar’s SUV on the Mulund-Airoli bridge. Police say that in retaliation, Khedkar and his chauffeur Praful Salunkhe abducted the truck’s helper, Prahlad Chauhan, and took him to Khedkar’s bungalow in Pune. Chauhan was rescued by the Rabale police the following day.Investigators later arrested Salunkhe six days after the incident by tracing him to Dhule district. He remains in magisterial custody.Opposing Khedkar’s plea, Rabale senior inspector Balkrushna Sawant told the court that the accused had been evading arrest for nearly a month and was not cooperating with the investigation. Sawant said that Khedkar and his wife Manorama, who also faces a case for allegedly obstructing police during Chauhan’s rescue, had obtained interim bail earlier but had not made themselves available for questioning.The officer added that police needed to recover key evidence, including the SUV allegedly used in the crime, mobile phones, and the CTV digital video recorder (DVR) reportedly taken away by Manorama from their bungalow.After hearing both sides, the Belapur court dismissed the anticipatory bail plea, observing that the accused’s custodial interrogation was essential for further investigation.
