MPSC Protest in Pune: Five Named in FIR Over Drone Use Without Permission

Reported by Mubarak Ansari

Navi Peth, 10th October 2026: Vishrambaug police have registered a case against five people over the alleged use of a drone without prior permission to film an MPSC aspirants’ protest at S.M. Joshi Bridge near Patrakar Bhavan in Navi Peth.

The FIR, registered at 1.56 a.m. on October 10, names photographer Digambar Bharat Khare, Pramod Patil, Shivraj More, Hrishikesh Gangurde and Akshay Kamble. The case has been registered under Section 223 (disobedience of an order duly promulgated (officially issued) by a lawfully empowered public servant) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

According to the complaint filed by police head constable Yuvraj Bharat Tele, the incident occurred at approximately 7.30 p.m. on October 5, when he was on duty at the protest site. The complaint states that the agitation, organised by Pramod Patil and Nitin Gite over demands raised by Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) aspirants, had been underway since October 1.

Tele stated that he noticed a drone flying above the crowd and traced its operator to an open space behind the protest site. He then informed Senior Police Inspector Navnath Jagtap and Police Sub-Inspector Kudale, who was deployed there.

According to the FIR, Khare allegedly told police that he did not have permission to operate the drone or approval from the local police. He also allegedly stated that he was filming at the instructions of Patil, More, Gangurde and Kamble.

Police instructed the operator to bring the drone down. A DJI drone camera, valued at approximately ₹40,000, and a remote controller, valued at ₹10,000, were seized and sealed after a seizure panchnama was prepared in the presence of two witnesses, the complaint states.

The FIR further records that Khare was subsequently asked to submit documents establishing permission for the drone operation, but had not provided them by the time the complaint was lodged.

Police Sub-Inspector Shobha Teli has been assigned to investigate the case.