Two Held for Daylight Murder of 2012 Pune Blast Accused
The Ahilyanagar police in Maharashtra have arrested two young men for the brazen daylight murder of Aslam Shabbir Shaikh alias Bunty Jahagirdar (52), a key accused in the 2012 Jangli Maharaj (JM) Road serial bomb blast case in Pune. The shooting, which has sent shockwaves through Shrirampur town, occurred around 2:50 pm on Wednesday, prompting a high-speed investigation.
Jahagirdar, a resident of ward number 2 in Shrirampur, Ahilyanagar district, was currently out on bail. The police, acting swiftly on clues from CCTV footage, apprehended the two suspects—Krushna Arun Shingare (23) and Ravindra Gautam Nikalje (23), both from Shrirampur—on Wednesday night itself.
A press release issued on Thursday confirmed that the accused have confessed to the crime. They have been booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 103, 109, 3(5) and the Indian Arms Act. A local court in Ahilyanagar has remanded them to police custody until January 6 for further interrogation.
Political Vendetta Alleged in First Information Report
The first information report (FIR) in the case was lodged by Jahagirdar's cousin, Raees Abdulgani Shaikh (43), who is a councillor at the Shrirampur Municipal Council. In a significant allegation, Raees Shaikh has claimed that a local gangster, Chanya Beg, orchestrated the killing due to political hostility.
According to the FIR, Jahagirdar was returning home on a two-wheeler with Amin Gulab Shaikh after attending a funeral when two men on a motorcycle opened fire near a hospital in Ward number 1. The assailants allegedly shouted "Ekach Bhai Chanya Bhai (Only Bhai is Chanya Bhai)" during the attack. While Amin Shaikh suffered a bullet graze on his back, Jahagirdar was fatally shot multiple times.
He was initially taken to Shrirampur's Sakhar Kamgar Hospital but was later shifted to a private facility where he was pronounced dead. His postmortem was conducted at the Ghati hospital in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar.
Deep-Rooted Political Rivalry and Criminal Past
The FIR paints a picture of intense political rivalry. Raees Shaikh stated that Jahagirdar had been active in local politics for 15-20 years. His mother was a councillor from 2011 to 2019, and after her death, Raees's wife held the position until 2021. Raees himself was elected as a councillor in December 2025.
Jahagirdar had recently worked for Congress MLA Hemant Ogale during the 2024 Vidhan Sabha elections and for Council President Kiran Sasane in the recent municipal council elections, contributing to their victories. The FIR alleges that Jahagirdar's growing political influence was obstructing the activities of the Beg brothers—Chanya, Sonya, and Tipya—who run an organised gang in Shrirampur.
Raees claimed that Chanya Beg was enraged after losing the 2024 Vidhansabha elections from the Shrirampur constituency and held Jahagirdar responsible. Police sources confirmed that Chanya alias Sagar Beg, a known criminal, contested as an independent and secured over 47,000 votes. He is also alleged to operate a fringe Hindutva group in the area.
However, the police have not named Beg as an accused yet. Somnath Gharge, Superintendent of Police, Ahilyanagar, stated that the motive, planning, firearm procurement, and possible involvement of others are under investigation. Police Inspector Nitin Deshmukh noted that one of the arrested had a prior criminal record, while the other did not.
Victim's Notorious History and Aftermath of Killing
Police records reveal that Jahagirdar was himself a notorious figure with a long criminal past. He was facing multiple cases linked to illegal sand mining, extortion, murder, and terrorism. The Ahilyanagar police had even issued externment orders against him due to his alleged criminal activities.
His most prominent case was his arrest by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in January 2013 for his alleged role in the low-intensity bomb blasts on Pune's JM Road on August 1, 2012. The ATS probe had indicated that the blasts were carried out on instructions from fugitive Indian Mujahideen (IM) terrorist Riyaz Bhatkal, to avenge the murder of alleged IM operative Qateel Siddiqui by gangster Sharad Mohol in Pune's Yerwada jail on June 6, 2012.
The ATS alleged that other accused in the blast case had procured weapons from Jahagirdar for revenge and for plotting assassinations. The Bombay High Court had granted him bail in this case in January 2023. Earlier, in 2006, he was also arrested in Nashik under the Officials Secret Act for allegedly leaking Army information.
The murder triggered significant tension in Shrirampur. Thousands attended Jahagirdar's funeral on Thursday, necessitating the deployment of two companies of the State Reserve Police Force alongside local police to maintain law and order. Authorities have warned of strict action against anyone spreading rumours or false content on social media regarding the case.
