Overview
- Unidentified motorcycle-borne attackers opened fire at Pradeep Purnekar outside his Manpada/Ganesh Nagar office late Tuesday night, he was taken to Infinity Hospital and died during treatment.
- Thane police say CCTV footage shows masked men arriving on a two-wheeler, investigators fired up multiple teams, set up checkpoints and are reconstructing the attack using camera and witness evidence.
- Officers have detained and arrested two key suspects, named in coverage as Pappya/Papu Shinde and Akash Nimse, while three to four other people remain under scrutiny and a manhunt continues.
- Purnekar’s family has publicly accused former Thane mayor Meenakshi Shinde and her husband Rajendra Shinde of involvement, and supporters have protested outside Kapurbawdi police station and delayed final rites until arrests are complete.
- Senior Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders have blamed the state government and the Shinde camp, turning the case into a flashpoint in the party’s long-running factional divide and intensifying calls for a swift, transparent investigation.