Pune: “Not Rape, It Was With Consent” – Defence Lawyers On Swargate Bus Depot Case
Reported By Varad Bhatkhande
Pune, 28th February 2025: In a surprising courtroom argument, defence lawyers Adv Wajid Khan and Adv Sajid Shah, representing the accused Dattatray Gade in the Swargate bus depot rape case, have claimed that the ‘act was consensual’. Shah maintained that his client, Gade, did not commit rape, arguing that both individuals had mutually agreed.
“She did not shout for help. It was not done forcefully. So, there was no rape. It was done with consent”, they argued.
However, the court remanded the accused to police custody till 12th March.
Gade, 37, was taken into custody earlier today, after an extensive 75-hour manhunt. He is accused of sexually assaulting a 26-year-old woman inside a parked bus at Pune’s Swargate Bus Depot on 25th February. The incident, which occurred just 100 meters from Swargate Police Station, has sparked widespread outrage and demands for enhanced security measures.
A known offender with a criminal history that includes theft, robbery, and chain-snatching, Gade was ultimately captured in Shirur Taluka, from his native village. Police in Pune District employed drones and sniffer dogs to track him down, culminating in his arrest in his native village of Gunat.
The defence’s consent claim directly contradicts the victim’s testimony. According to her police statement, Gade initially approached her at the bus station, addressed her as tai (sister), and then coerced her into an empty bus, where the assault allegedly occurred. During interrogation, Gade also denied raping the victim, stating to the Pune Police that the act was consensual.
