Political Protest Disrupts Pune Metro Services, FIR Filed Against Protesters
Reported by Mubarak Ansari
Shivajinagar, 9th March 2025: A sudden protest by political party office bearers of the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar group) on the tracks of Pune Metro’s Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) Metro Station disrupted metro services for an hour today.
According to Pune Metro officials, around 1 PM, protesters arrived at the metro station in small groups of 2-4 people, posing as regular passengers. Without warning, they stormed onto the metro tracks and staged a sit-in protest on the tracks and side rails.
Metro security guards acted swiftly and suspended metro services at PMC Metro Station as a precautionary measure. Maha Metro officials, realizing the seriousness of the situation, immediately alerted the police and fire brigade.
The history of great leaders should be taught in every school, youth should have access to employment opportunities, incidents of sexual assault against women and girls must be stopped with strict punishment for the accused, and nepotism in politics should be eliminated—these were the demands raised by Narendra Pavtekar, Pune city vice president of the Sharad Pawar group of NCP. As part of the demonstration, he and other protesters stood on the metro tracks, disrupting services. During the protest, a tense moment unfolded when one of the protesters attempted to commit suicide by pouring petrol on himself.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 1) Sandeep Singh Gill was engaging with the protesters when an argument broke out between them and the police. The situation escalated, prompting the police to resort to a lathi charge to disperse the demonstrators and clear the metro tracks.
The Shivajinagar Police later detained all protesters and registered an FIR against them based on a complaint filed by Pune Metro.
During the protest, services on Line-1 of Pune Metro continued to run smoothly between Pimpri-Chinchwad and Swargate stations. Similarly, Line-2 services operated as usual between Ramwadi-District Court and Vanaz-Chhatrapati Sambhaji Udyan stations. However, metro services at PMC Metro Station were completely halted from 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM.
Pune Metro authorities confirmed that services resumed at 2:30 PM after the protest ended. The metro administration also apologized for the inconvenience caused to passengers due to the disruption.
Police officials are now investigating the incident and further action is expected against the protesters.
Narendra Pavtekar’s Expulsion from NCP
“Narendra Pavtekar, a worker from the Kasba Assembly constituency, joined the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Chandra Pawar faction) three months ago. However, since joining, he has not actively participated in any party movements or programs. Today, he staged a protest against Pune Metro, engaged in an argument with the police, and caused inconvenience to Punekars. These actions are highly condemnable. His protest was entirely personal and had no connection with the party. The party does not endorse any act that obstructs the public or involves disputes with law enforcement. In light of these events, Narendra Pavtekar is hereby expelled from the party”, said Prashant Sudam Jagtap, President, Pune City Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Chandra Pawar).
