Pune: The Bombay High Court has granted anticipatory bail to Swapnil Ashok Kekare, a 58-year-old resident of Aundh, Pune, who is accused of assaulting and molesting a woman during a road rage incident.

The case, registered on July 20, 2024, also names Kekare’s wife, Shreya, as an accused. While the Pune District Court had earlier denied Swapnil's bail plea, his wife had been granted anticipatory bail.

Following this, Swapnil Kekare, through his legal team, appealed to the Bombay High Court, where Justice Manish Pitale granted him conditional anticipatory bail.

The incident occurred on a busy Pune street during heavy traffic. The complainant, a hotel manager, was riding her two-wheeler with two young children, while the Kekare couple was driving their Honda City.

A dispute erupted over the right of way, leading to a heated exchange between the two parties.

The situation escalated when Swapnil Kekare allegedly punched the woman in the nose, causing a fracture and heavy bleeding. The complainant further alleged that Kekare molested her by inappropriately touching her chest.

Demonstrating quick thinking, the complainant streamed the incident live on social media, capturing the assault and posting it for public view. The video quickly gained attention, and police arrived at the scene shortly after the incident as a crowd gathered around.

During the court proceedings, Kekare’s defense lawyers, Satyam Harshad Nimbalkar and Harshvardhan Milind Pawar, argued that the incident was a result of road rage during peak traffic and that there was no premeditated intention to harm the woman.

They further pointed out that Kekare had also filed a counter-complaint, alleging that the complainant had assaulted him. The defense characterized the complainant’s accusations as false and argued that she had made them out of spite.

In his judgment, Justice Manish Pitale noted that the incident took place within moments during a high-traffic situation and found no evidence of an intention to assault or molest the complainant.

The court also raised doubts about the feasibility of such an act occurring during heavy traffic. Given these observations, the court deemed that there was no need to detain the accused for further investigation.

The decision of the district court was overturned, and Swapnil Kekare was granted conditional anticipatory bail.