Police arrested software engineer Prashant Bankar in connection with the death of a 28-year-old woman doctor in Satara. The doctor had named him and a police officer in a note written on her palm before her death.
A software engineer has been arrested in connection with the tragic death of a 28-year-old woman doctor in Maharashtra’s Satara district, police confirmed on Saturday (October 25, 2025).
According to officials, a team from the Phaltan police arrested Prashant Bankar from Pune, about 125 km from Satara, in the morning. Bankar is one of the two men whose names were written on the woman’s palm in a note found after her death.
ALSO READ: Justice Aniruddha Bose warns of ‘digital apartheid’, urges cautious use of AI in courts
Police said that Bankar, accused of mentally harassing the woman, has been charged with abetment of suicide. He was later produced before a Satara district court, which sent him to four days of police custody.
The woman doctor, a native of Beed district in the Marathwada region, was working at a government hospital in Satara. She was found hanging in a hotel room in Phaltan town on Thursday night (October 23).
In a note written on her palm, the doctor alleged that police sub-inspector (PSI) Gopal Badane raped her on multiple occasions, while Bankar, a software engineer, mentally harassed her.
Based on the allegations, police have registered a case of rape and abetment of suicide against both men at the Phaltan police station.
According to investigators, Bankar is the son of the landlord of the house where the doctor stayed. Police said that she had spoken to him over the phone and chatted with him before ending her life.
Sub-inspector Badane, who has not yet been arrested, was suspended from duty after his name surfaced during the probe, officials added.
The doctor’s body was cremated at her native place in Beed’s Wadwani tehsil on Friday night (October 24). Her relatives have demanded capital punishment for the accused.
One of her relatives told a news channel that the doctor had complained multiple times about harassment, but her grievances were ignored. Another relative claimed that she was pressured to alter medical reports at the hospital where she worked.
A relative said,
“Political people in Phaltan often asked her to change medical reports as she used to be regularly on autopsy duty. She had complained multiple times against the PSI (named in the note), but her complaints were not looked into.”
The same relative further emphasised,
“Just apprehending the accused is not enough. They should be hanged to ensure justice to the doctor and her family.”
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Ambadas Danve criticised Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who also holds the Home Affairs portfolio, over the woman’s death and the involvement of a police officer in the case.
Danve wrote on X,
“There is a need for women’s security more than that of ‘Ladki Bahin’ (a financial scheme for women from low income families). If people who flourished under the wings of Fadnavis are harassing women in such a manner, then Fadnavis has failed as the Home Minister and should resign.”
He also urged the National Commission for Women chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar to step in and intervene in the matter.
In addition, BJP MLA Suresh Dhas demanded that a Member of Parliament (MP) who allegedly pressured the woman doctor should also be made an accused.
He said,
“Investigation will reveal who are the MP and his aides involved in threatening her. If they are involved, no matter who they are, they should be made accused in the case.”
According to a purported reply the doctor had submitted earlier this year to authorities in Satara district—after a subordinate police official complained against her—she mentioned that she faced threats from police officers because of her work and even endured taunts about crime in Beed, her home district.
One of her relatives further alleged that the police repeatedly pressured her to modify post-mortem and medical test reports of accused persons brought to the hospital.
Dhas also said that there must be an independent investigation into her death and that strict action should be taken against those who ignored her earlier complaints.
Majalgaon MLA and NCP leader Prakash Solanke met the woman doctor’s family, who demanded the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to ensure a fair and transparent probe.
Her family told Solanke that she was mentally strong and would not have taken her own life unless she faced extreme harassment.
Her two cousins, who are also doctors, alleged that the hospital administration deliberately gave her post-mortem duty to harass her.
Her family added that the doctor wanted to pursue an MD (Doctor of Medicine) course and was preparing for it. They said she had taken a loan of Rs 3 lakh for her MBBS degree, which had not yet been repaid.
Her uncle told PTI that her father is a farmer and not well educated. He said,
“Her father is a farmer, he is not an educated person. I am a teacher and I took her to Beed for schooling….she did not want to stop at MBBS, but wanted to pursue MD in medicine, ENT or non-clinical branches.”
This shocking case has sparked widespread outrage, highlighting serious concerns about police accountability, workplace harassment, and women’s safety in Maharashtra.
Political leaders, family members, and citizens have demanded swift and transparent action, calling for strict punishment and justice for the young doctor.
Click Here to Read More Reports On Doctor Death
