A 71-year-old man from Pune was cheated of Rs 22 lakh by cyber fraudsters posing as senior Karnataka police officials and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officers, who threatened him with digital arrest, police said on Thursday.

The incident took place between October 5 and 15. The complainant, Chandraram Balanna Kuttapelli (71), a resident of Alandi Road, received a call from an unidentified mobile number. The caller allegedly introduced himself as a senior police official from Karnataka and later posed as a CBI officer.

The accused told the elderly man that his SIM card had been misused in a child trafficking case. To make the allegations appear genuine, they asked him to transfer money as a security deposit, claiming that the amount would be digitally verified.

The fraudsters subsequently threatened the complainant with digital arrest and allegedly coerced him into transferring a total of Rs 22 lakh to bank accounts provided by them.

Following the complaint, Vishrantwadi police registered a case on November 11 under Sections 319(2) and 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 66D of the Information Technology Act.

No arrests have been made in the case so far.

In a similar incident reported earlier on July 18, cyber fraudsters posing as CBI officials had threatened a 73-year-old Rahatani resident with prosecution in a money laundering case. They had forced him to transfer Rs 22 lakh to what they described as the ‘Supreme Court’s Secret Supervision Account’ for verification purposes. The fraud took place between June 29 and July 3.

The elderly man subsequently lodged a complaint with the cybercrime cell, following which Wakad police registered a case.

According to the complaint, an officer from Wakad police said the fraudsters contacted the victim while posing as IPS and CBI officers. They claimed that his Aadhaar card had been used to purchase a mobile phone and that a complaint had been filed against him.

A dispute over bursting firecrackers during Diwali turned violent in Mumbai’s Andheri East, where a group of eight to ten people launched a brutal attack on a husband, wife and their daughter.

The accused allegedly threw the woman to the ground and assaulted her with kicks, punches and sticks. When her husband intervened to rescue her, he was also severely beaten. The couple and their daughter sustained serious injuries in the attack.

Following the incident, the injured family members were rushed to Balasaheb Thackeray Trauma Care Hospital in Jogeshwari for treatment.

According to police, the incident took place in the Marol Krishna Nagar area of Andheri East. On the occasion of Diwali, a young girl from the Gupta family was bursting firecrackers in a vacant street when Badal Goswami and his associates objected to it.

The accused allegedly started abusing the Gupta family, following which an argument broke out between the two sides. The dispute soon escalated into violence, with Badal Goswami and his associates allegedly attacking the family.

According to the complaint, eight to ten men pinned the woman to the ground and brutally assaulted her with kicks, punches and sticks. Her husband, who rushed to her rescue, was also attacked by the group. Their daughter was also injured in the incident.

Following the incident, Mumbai’s MIDC Police registered a case against eight to ten people in connection with the attack.

Police have arrested four accused, including alleged gang leader Badal Goswami. The other arrested persons have been identified as Dharmendra Rajbhar, Jitendra Rajbhar and Shyam Narayan Gupta.

Police are conducting further investigations and efforts are underway to trace and arrest the remaining accused involved in the incident.

Separately, a bodyguard posted at Rashtrapati Bhavan was allegedly shot in the head by a neighbour after an argument over bursting firecrackers turned violent in Uttar Pradesh on Diwali night. He had returned home on leave to celebrate the festival with his family.

Amid ongoing political allegations and counter-allegations surrounding the plane crash involving late Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Chief National Spokesperson Umesh Patil on Wednesday made a sensational statement.

Patil claimed that it is his “gut feeling” that Ajitdada’s death was not merely an accident, but a suspected conspiracy. He also clarified that Sunetra Pawar, Parth Pawar, and Jay Pawar are actively pursuing this matter.

Earlier, senior Shiv Sena leader Ramdas Kadam had directly demanded an inquiry into NCP Maharashtra President and MP Sunil Tatkare over Ajit Pawar’s plane crash, levelling serious allegations against him.

While NCP leaders were responding to these allegations, Umesh Patil’s expression of doubt regarding the tragedy has once again given a new political turn to the case.

Expressing suspicion over Ajit Pawar’s plane crash, Patil said, “Based on my close association and observations of various things, and considering the sequence of events during the tragedy and the potential reasons behind it, I feel that this was not an accident, but a conspiracy.”

He added that appropriate follow-up is underway on the right platform, with Sunetra Pawar, Parth Pawar, and Jay Pawar also making efforts in this regard.

Speaking on the investigation into the plane crash, Patil noted that the incident involves multiple technical aspects and stated that it would not be appropriate to comment further until the reports from relevant investigative agencies are released.

Following Ramdas Kadam’s allegations, Patil’s raising of suspicions regarding the crash is likely to heat the political atmosphere in the state once again.

Meanwhile, NCP SP MLA Rohit Pawar announced that he will address a major press conference in Mumbai on November 14 or 15 to unveil crucial findings regarding the tragic plane crash that claimed the life of former Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.

The statement comes amidst heightened political tension and allegations of foul play following the crash of the VSR Ventures Learjet 45 near Baramati Airport on January 28, 2026.

Calling his scheduled November 14/15 press conference his “most important presentation,” Rohit Pawar stated that he plans to present key evidence, phone records, and technical observations surrounding the final moments of the flight.

He reiterated that a large segment of the public in Maharashtra suspects the crash was not a mere accident, but a potential case of foul play.

He criticised the state government and investigating agencies for moving at a “saintly pace” and failing to register a formal FIR to resolve growing public suspicion.

Responding to a question about the allegations made by senior Shiv Sena leader Ramdas Kadam against NCP state president Sunil Tatkare in connection with the plane crash, Rohit Pawar reacted to these allegations.

“I have not heard what Ramdas Kadam has accused. But some people called and told me that Ramdas Kadam has linked Sunil Tatkare’s name to Ajit Pawar’s accident. My only opinion is that the investigation into Ajit Pawar’s accident is not being done in the way it should be,” he alleged.

“We suspect that Ajit Pawar’s accident was a case of sabotage. But the people in power are not dispelling that suspicion,” he said.

He added that the investigation is not going in the right direction, adding that the investigation of Ajit Dada is going on at a snail’s pace.

“We are also starting to have doubts about the investigation. The people in power are deliberately not investigating properly. Still, let Diwali happen once. On November 14 or 15, I will give my last and most important presentation of many days in Mumbai. The revelations I am going to make in that regard will definitely be surprising for you,” he said.

He further added that every person in Maharashtra has doubts about Ajit Pawar’s accident.

Saying that 90 per cent of people suspect that Ajit’s accident was not an accident but a hit-and-run, he added, “We also have the same opinion.”

He said that if an FIR is not filed in this case in a state like Maharashtra, then the ruling party is saving the person responsible for Ajit’s accident.