Thane court acquits man accused of obstructing civic officials during anti-encroachment drive

Additional sessions judge G T Pawar on Wednesday acquitted Hemant Tanaji Mahale, who had been booked under section 353 assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of duty of the Indian Penal Code and relevant provisions of the Maharashtra Regional Town Planning MRTP Act. The case was registered on December 1, 2022, based on a complaint by a senior official of the Thane Municipal Corporation TMC, alleging that Mahale had obstructed a civic team during an anti-encroachment drive.

A court in Maharashtra's Thane district has acquitted a man accused of obstructing public servants during an anti-encroachment drive, citing that the prosecution failed to provide reliable evidence to prove the charges against him. Additional sessions judge G T Pawar on Wednesday acquitted Hemant Tanaji Mahale, who had been booked under section 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of duty) of the Indian Penal Code and relevant provisions of the Maharashtra Regional Town Planning (MRTP) Act. The case was registered on December 1, 2022, based on a complaint by a senior official of the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC), alleging that Mahale had obstructed a civic team during an anti-encroachment drive. During the trial, the defence argued that Mahale was a social worker falsely implicated in the case because he had previously filed complaints against a local MLA regarding illegal constructions. The judge observed that the evidence of the prosecution witnesses about assault, use of criminal force or obstruction in the discharge of duty was contradictory to each other and hence, unreliable. It also held that the fact that the informant or his colleagues were on duty at the time of the incident is not proven, he stated. The court further noted that there is no material on record to show that the land in question belonged to the government and that the accused had encroached upon it by carrying out illegal construction on it. It acquitted the accused, holding that the prosecution had failed to prove that he had either used criminal force or carried out unauthorised development.

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