Pune: Four Arrested in Ganesh Kale Murder Case; Police Probe Gang Rivalry Angle

Reported by Mubarak Ansari

Kondhwa, 2nd November 2025: Pune Police have arrested four accused in connection with the brutal murder of rickshaw driver Ganesh Kale, a resident of the Kondhwa area. Police suspect the killing to be the latest act of violence in the ongoing gang rivalry between the Andekar and Komkar groups.

According to officials, the arrested suspects had fled the city after the crime, which took place on Saturday afternoon near a petrol pump on Bopdev Ghat Road, between Khadi Machine Chowk and Saswad. One of the accused is reportedly a close associate of notorious gangster Krishna Andekar, while another is said to be a social media “reel star.”

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone V) Rajkumar Shinde said the attack occurred around 3:30 pm when Kale was driving his rickshaw from Yewalewadi towards Khadi Machine Chowk. The assailants, riding two motorcycles, chased him down and opened fire at close range. “Four rounds were fired. After Kale collapsed, the attackers stabbed him in the head with a sharp weapon,” Shinde said.

CCTV footage from the petrol pump and surrounding area has captured the assailants fleeing the scene with weapons in hand. The police have seized the footage and are conducting further investigation to identify others possibly involved.

Kale, aged 32, sustained bullet injuries to his neck, chest, and stomach, and was declared dead on the spot. Investigators said the method of attack bore similarities to the murder of former corporator Vanraj Andekar, who was also shot and later stabbed in a similar fashion.

Police sources said Ganesh Kale was the brother of Sameer Kale, a key member of the Komkar gang and an accused in the Andekar murder case. Sameer is currently lodged in jail. Officers are probing whether Ganesh’s murder was an act of retaliation linked to the long-standing feud between the Andekar and Komkar gangs.

The gang rivalry has claimed multiple lives in Pune over the past year. The murder of Ayush Komkar in September had already reignited tensions between the groups. The latest killing, police fear, could escalate the ongoing turf war further.

Both the Andekar and Komkar gangs, as well as their associates, are currently under strict police watch. Several members of these gangs have been booked under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), and police have also dismantled parts of the financial network of Bandu alias Suryakant Andekar.