Senior tax officer arrested from Pune in suicide abetment case after 40-day hunt

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: The Beed district police's local crime branch on Tuesday arrested senior state tax officer Pradeep Phate, from Lonikand in Pune's Haveli taluka, in connection with GST state tax officer Sachin Jadhavar's death, after he managed to evade arrest for over 40 days.A case of abetment to suicide was registered against Phate on Jan 17 at the Beed rural police station.Beed superintendent of police Navneet Kanwat said, "Both the accused and the deceased are Class-I officers serving as state tax officers (STO) in the GST department. According to the suicide note left by Jadhavar — who was junior to Phate by around one-and-a-half years in service — he faced sustained workplace harassment from his senior."Police said that on Jan 16, Jadhavar had left his residence, saying he was heading to the office, but did not return. The next day, his body was found inside his locked car, near the Kapiladharwadi crossroads on the Dhule–Solapur highway, around 16 km from Beed town. A note recovered from his pocket named senior officials and referred to alleged harassment.Following a detailed complaint lodged by his wife, Mayuri Jadhavar, the Beed rural police registered an FIR on Jan 23 against Phate for abetment to suicide. The complaint alleged that Phate, who held additional charge at the time, repeatedly humiliated Jadhavar in front of colleagues and exerted pressure on him to clear questionable files and extend favours to certain private entities. Unable to withstand the alleged mental torture and coercion into unethical decisions, Jadhavar is suspected to have taken the extreme step.After the case was registered, Phate went into hiding. His anticipatory bail plea was rejected by the local court, citing the seriousness of the accusations. The delay in his arrest triggered protests by Jadhavar's family. On Feb 25, Mayuri and relatives began an indefinite hunger strike outside the SP's office, demanding immediate action. The agitation was withdrawn after the police assured them of action.Acting on technical surveillance and human intelligence inputs, the LCB team traced Phate to Lonikand, where he was reportedly staying at a relative's house. A team led by LCB inspector Shivaji Bantewad nabbed the suspect.Police said Phate will be produced before a court to seek custody for further interrogation, as investigators now probe allegations of systemic harassment and possible irregularities within the department.