Sagar Kothari appointed special public prosecutor in Davadi murder appeal before Bombay High Court

The Maharashtra government has appointed Adv Sagar Vasant Kothari as Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) to represent the prosecution in Criminal Appeal No. 367 of 2025, pending before the Bombay High Court, in the Davadi murder case in Pune district. The appeal against the murder verdict is now pending for hearing in the High Court, and Kothari has been given the responsibility of presenting the state's case there.

The appointment was made through notification No. SPP.3119/C.R.228/D-XIV, issued by the state's Law and Judiciary Department on October 27, 2026. The appeal arises from C.R. No. 223 of 2018, registered at Khed police station in Pune district.

Kothari had also appeared for the prosecution in the trial before the Additional Sessions Judge at Khed-Rajgurunagar. In that trial, the prosecution examined 16 witnesses in all, including the complainant, other key witnesses, a medical officer and the investigating officer.

The sessions court delivered its verdict on February 7, 2025, and passed its order on sentence on February 10, 2025. It convicted the accused, Ajit Bhagwan Kanhurkar, of murder under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), sentenced him to life imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh. The court, however, acquitted him of the charges under the Arms Act and the Maharashtra/Mumbai Police Act. He was thus found guilty of murder and let off on the charges under the two other laws.

According to the prosecution, the incident took place on June 12, 2018. Shrinath Sudam Khese and his sister Paurnima had boarded a Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) bus at the Khese Vasti bus stop. As the bus was heading towards Rajgurunagar, the accused allegedly attacked Shrinath with a sickle inside the bus and fled.

Shrinath was taken to hospital, where he was declared dead. Khed police then registered a case and investigated the incident.

With his appointment as special public prosecutor, Kothari will now handle the prosecution's case at the appeal stage in the Bombay High Court. He had earlier conducted the trial in which the accused was convicted of murder.