Tuljapur (Dharashiv): An 18-year-old college student has died after allegedly being assaulted by a group of men in Maharashtra's Dharashiv district following accusations that he had harassed and followed a girl, police said. The victim, Sameer Jabbar Patel, was a first-year B.Com student at Tuljabhavani Mahavidyalaya in Tuljapur.

Source: Madhyamam

Police said the assault took place between the evening of November 3 and the early hours of November 4, after Patel was accused of following and troubling a relative of Santosh Kadam, a former Tuljapur Municipal Council president. According to the FIR filed by Patel's family, Kadam had first confronted the teenager about the allegation around three months earlier. Maktoob Media reported that the police investigation is examining the full sequence of events, including an alleged abduction, assaults at different locations and the circumstances in which Patel was left near a parking area.

Following a complaint by Patel's mother, Tuljapur police registered a case against eight people, including Kadam, on charges including murder and kidnapping under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Kadam, whose full name is Santosh Devidas Kadam and who is also known as Parameshwar, and Sanjay Vilas Jadhav were arrested on November 6 and remanded to seven days of police custody.

Dharashiv Superintendent of Police Ritu Khoker Kalyan said the remaining accused named in the FIR were being sought, Maktoob Media reported. Madhyamam reported that AIMIM corporator Azhar Mujawar has submitted a complaint seeking strict action against those responsible. Maktoob Media also reported that Kadam was earlier associated with the Nationalist Congress Party before joining the Bharatiya Janata Party in November 2025.

Police said the investigation is continuing. The allegations against all eight accused are yet to be tested in court, and no one has been convicted in the case.