Nagpur: What began as a trivial objection to open urination spiralled into a chilling display of lawlessness in Nagpur’s Gurudeo Nagar, exposing glaring cracks in policing and crowd control as back-to-back arson attacks rocked two localities within a span of three hours after midnight.
Despite an early flashpoint and police intervention, mobs went on the rampage, torching a café and later setting a vehicle ablaze nearly 2 km away, raising serious questions about preventive action, surveillance of habitual offenders, and the failure to neutralise an obvious threat before it exploded into violence.
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04 Feb 2026
The trigger was an altercation late Monday night on Nandanvan Cement Road, where notorious criminal Abhijit Shelke, well-known to police, facing multiple cases and previously externed, was allegedly caught urinating in public along with his aide, Waghmare. When café owner Faizan Mushtaq Shaikh objected to the public nuisance outside his establishment near Rashtrasant Tukdoji Sabhagruha, the situation degenerated rapidly.
According to police, Shelke and his associate assaulted Faizan and swiftly mobilised their gang, turning a civic objection into a muscle-flexing showdown. Faizan, too, called for support, leading to a clash outside the café. Nandanvan police intervened, separated the rival groups, detained several individuals from both sides, and brought them to the police station in what appeared to be a routine effort to “cool down” tempers.
But that intervention proved dangerously inadequate.
While officers were still occupied with paperwork and statements, Shelke’s supporters allegedly regrouped, returned to the spot unchecked, broke open the café and set it ablaze. The fire caused extensive damage to the eatery and an adjacent salon before fire brigade teams managed to bring the flames under control, an act that unfolded despite the area having already been flagged as volatile.
Shockingly, the violence did not end there.
Within hours, another targeted attack was reported from Buland Darwaza in Sakkardara police limits, around 2 km away, where a vehicle allegedly belonging to one of Faizan’s supporters was chased down and torched. Sources described the act as a calculated move to intimidate and assert dominance, underscoring the brazenness with which the perpetrators operated.
Police have yet to officially link the two arson incidents. “There is a supposed link, but connections will be established after a thorough probe,” a senior officer said. However, the sequence of events, an initial clash, followed by two fires in quick succession, has fuelled criticism that the situation was grossly underplayed and poorly contained at the outset.
Senior officials have denied any communal angle, stressing that the violence stemmed from an ego clash following the open urination dispute and not religious discord. Still, the optics of unchecked mob violence and repeat offenders roaming free have unsettled residents.
An FIR was registered on the complaint of Ayaz Mohd of Yashodhara Nagar. Six supporters of Shelke and four from Faizan’s side have been detained for questioning. Shelke’s group faces charges of assault and mischief by fire or explosive substance, among other serious offences, while a non-cognisable offence was registered against Faizan and his associates.
As investigations continue to reconstruct the timeline and determine whether the arsons were pre-planned or opportunistic, residents of Gurudeo Nagar and surrounding areas are demanding tougher action against habitual criminals, round-the-clock monitoring of known troublemakers, and faster, firmer police response during flare-ups.
Additional police contingents remained deployed through the night to prevent retaliation, while senior officers have taken personal charge of the probe. Yet, the damage is done, leaving behind burnt properties, shaken neighbourhoods, and an uncomfortable question: how did a known criminal manage to trigger, escalate and execute multiple violent acts despite police being alerted from the very start?
