Trigger Warning: Graphic Images of Injury A week after an FIR was registered at Saswad police station in Pune district of Maharashtra in connection with the alleged mob assault on 14 Muslim men during an Iftar gathering by a large mob, no arrests have b… Read on blog or Reader Alt News Read on blog or Reader They said Muslims can't sit here, tore our clothes, beat us: Survivor recalls Pune Iftar attack; no arrests yet By Ankita Mahalanobish on 21st March 2026 Trigger Warning: Graphic Images of Injury A week after an FIR was registered at Saswad police station in Pune district of Maharashtra in connection with the alleged mob assault on 14 Muslim men during an Iftar gathering by a large mob, no arrests have been made. Saswad SHO Kumar Kadam told Alt News on March 19, "Investigation is underway. We have a few suspects, but they have reportedly fled the area. We are facing hurdles because villagers are not cooperating." The incident occurred on the evening of March 13, 2026, at Bopdev Ghat, a popular tourist spot in Pune's Bhiwari area. According to the complaint, the group had gathered by the lakeside to break their Ramzan fast when they were allegedly attacked by a large mob. A case was registered against an estimated 150 unidentified individuals for assaulting the men with sticks, rods, whips and other sharp weapons. Police filed a case under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Section 118(1) (voluntarily causing hurt using dangerous weapons or means), Section 189(2) (criminal intimidation involving serious threats), Section 190 (intentional insult to provoke breach of peace), Sections 191(2) and 191(3) (spreading false or harmful information), Sections 351(2) and 351(3) (assault or use of criminal force), and Section 352 (punishment for assault or criminal force otherwise than on grave provocation). Additional charges have also been invoked under Sections 4 and 25 of the Arms Act, 1959, and Section 135 of the Maharashtra Police Act, 1951. 'Yeh Tumhare Baap Ka Jagah Hai? Mullah Nehi Baith Sakta Yahan' In a conversation with Alt News, Feroz Javed Sayyed, one of the survivors of the assault, recounted the events of the fateful day. "We had reached the ghat before it was time to break the fast. We were cutting fruits, arranging food, taking pictures and videos — simply preparing for Iftar and enjoying ourselves," Sayyed said. The gathering was abruptly disrupted when a mob of around 150–200 people descended on them, allegedly hurling communal slurs and questioning their presence. "They asked if the place belonged to our father and said Muslims could not sit there," he said, recalling the abuse ("Yeh tumhare baap ka jagah hai? Mullah nehi baith sakta yaha"). According to him, the verbal abuse quickly escalated into violence. "The attackers were armed with sticks, rods, chains, whips and sharp weapons. They tore our clothes, ripped off our skullcaps, and warned us never to return here wearing Pathani kurtas," he said. The group comprised friends and family members — Fardeen Husain, Sakib Banedar, Afnan Shaikh, Arbaz Ballari, Parvez Mulla, Samit Nazir, Zubair Bagwan, Aftab Khan, Ali Abbas, Adil Shaikh, Amin Shaikh, Altamash Sayyed, Salman Khan, and Feroz himself, 36, the oldest in the group in which everyone was aged between 25 and 30. Several were students, while some had just joined jobs. The group comprised friends and family members, most of whom were aged between 25 and 30 | Photo shared with Alt News by Feroz Javed Sayyed Ten of the fourteen sustained injuries. Sayyed said that Amin suffered severe head injuries requiring 14 stitches, while Sakib sustained deep wounds to his back. Sayyed said, "I dialled 112 and called the police. They arrived within 30 minutes, around 7 pm, but by then the mob had already dispersed. We took our friends to a nearby nursing home, and a few of us then went to the police station to register a complaint." Sayyed further alleged that his group was not the only one targeted that evening. "Others were beaten as well, but they are too afraid to file a complaint," he said. He also claimed that the group had identified a few of the alleged perpetrators and shared their names and photographs with the police, but although some individuals were briefly detained, they were later released. The attackers were armed with sticks, rods, chains, whips and sharp weapons, Sayyed said | Photo: Feroz Javed Sayyed 'No arrests Yet, Don't Want to Make Mistakes in identifying Accused'  When Alt News spoke to Saswad SHO Kumar Kadam, he confirmed that no arrests had been made till March 19. "There haven't been any arrests yet. The police are still investigating. We don't want to make any mistakes in identifying the perpetrators," he said. He added that while a few suspects had been identified, progress was slowed by a lack of local cooperation. "We have some suspected individuals, but the villagers are not cooperating. It appears that some of them may have fled to their native villages." Addressing the victims' allegations that some individuals were detained and later released, Kadam said the police had carried out a detailed verification. "We detained the 10 individuals identified by the victims and conducted an extensive investigation over nearly 15 hours. This included examining multiple CCTV footages and verifying alibis. The evidence showed they were not involved in the assault, and they were subsequently released," he explained. Kadam rejected suggestions of bias or inaction. "The Maharashtra Police does not discriminate. We are not trying to shield anyone. A crime is a crime, and a perpetrator is a perpetrator," he said. Detailing the police response, Kadam noted that the information was received through the emergency call centre. "Bopdev Ghat is located just 1–2 kilometres from the police station. We reached the spot in about 20 minutes. When we arrived, around 7 pm, we found several individuals seriously injured. We took a few of them along with us to the station to initiate the complaint process," he said. Expressing confidence in the probe, Kadam added, "We are continuing our investigation, and the perpetrators will be apprehended soon." CCTV Camera Covered with Jacket Sayyed alleged that similar incidents had taken place at the same location in the days leading up to the attack. "After our case became known, some people reached out to us, saying they too had been assaulted during Iftar gatherings here a few days earlier. However, they chose not to approach the police," he said. Emphasizing that such gatherings were not unusual, Sayyed noted that his companions had been organizing Iftar meals at Bopdev Ghat for the past two to three years without incident. "Though it was my first time joining them at Bopdev Ghat, my brother and other friends have been organising Iftar gatherings at this spot for the past two to three years. Nothing like this has ever happened before," he said. Sayyed also alleged that the assailants had obscured the only CCTV camera in the area by covering it with a jacket before launching the attack on March 13. The video embedded below was recorded the following day when police and some of the survivors went to the place of occurrence on the next day. Watch it here: https://vimeo.com/1175676344?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci The CCTV camera in question is installed at the entrance gate of a restaurant. Notably, the jacket allegedly used to block the camera bore the restaurant's logo. When asked about this, SHO Kadam denied any foul play. He gave Alt News the following explanation: "When we went to the place of the alleged attack on March 13, we noticed the CCTV camera. There was no cover on it. We asked for its recordings from the restaurant, but found that the camera was not functional. Since the CCTV camera became an object of interest for everyone and the restaurant faced multiple queries, they covered it. It was not covered at the time of the incident." Alt News also spoke to the proprietor of the restaurant. He told us that the place had opened only a few months ago, "CCTV cameras have been installed, but they are not functional yet." Asked about the jacket cover, he said he did not have any information on that. In October 2024, a 21-year-old woman from Gujarat studying event management in Pune was allegedly gang-raped at Bopdev Ghat when she had gone there with a male friend from her college. Around 11 pm, three men came on motorbikes and allegedly tied up the man and dragged the woman to a secluded area before taking turns to rape her. All three accused were later arrested.

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