Title - Asst sub-inspector caught with illegal pistol at railway station

Says he found it at his son's home and was carrying it to throw it from the running train

A major security lapse was averted at the Pune railway station when a routine bag scan revealed that an assistant sub-inspector (ASI) of police was carrying an illegal country made pistol in his bag. The arrested person has been identified as Subhash Ganpatrao Gaikwad (55), who hails from Narayannagar in Amravati.On Sunday, Gaikwad was produced before the court of judicial magistrate first class, which remanded him in a day’s police custody on the grounds that police were probing from where he got the pistol, whether he had used it or had plans to sell it.The incident came to light after a constable Sachin Jagdhale, attached to the railway protection force (RPF), lodged a complaint with the government railway police (GRP) on Saturday.According to inspector DS Rajput, the RPF in-charge here, Gaikwad has been currently posted at the Amravati wireless department. Subhash had planned to travel back to his hometown in Amravati by Azad Express.

“Around 6pm, Gaikwad entered platform number one where a constable found a suspicious object in his bag during scanning. Gaikwad was first reluctant to give his bag claiming the different object was just a toy and also showed his police identity card to get away. Our constable insisted on checking the bag and found a seven-inch countrymade pistol,” Rajput said.

When the RPF asked him whether he had arms documents and licence, Gaikwad told that he was in Pune to visit his software engineer son at Shivne and found the pistol in his house, the inspector said.

“Gaikwad further claimed that he took away the pistol without telling his son and was planning to throw it away from a running train,” he said.

An offence had been registered against Gaikwad and he had been handed over to GRP. He was then arrested by GRP under relevant sections of Arms Act.

Mahendra Bagade, assistant police inspector, GRP, who is investigating the case said, “Gaikwad claimed that he had come to Pune to visit his son Shrikant. While cleaning the house, he found the pistol in the garden area. Without asking his son, he kept the pistol along with him and was travelling to his workplace. Despite being in  the police department, he did not alert the police. We are recording the statement of his son after which the picture will be clear.”