Prateek Tanmay
A 28-year-old man from Ranjangaon in Pune, who jumped into the sea from Mumbai’s Atal Setu bridge in the early hours of Sunday, is yet to be found, with search operations continuing into Wednesday evening.
The deceased, identified as Pratik Subhash Raskar, a share market trading instructor who also invested in stocks himself, had left his residence – Khedkar Vasti in Ranjangaon, Shirur taluka of Pune – on Saturday night around 10.30 pm, telling his mother he was stepping out for dinner, but didn’t return.
According to the Ulwe police, CCTV footage from the bridge captured Raskar stopping his SUV after passing around 13 kilometres on the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL), or Atal Setu, at 1.29 am on Sunday, before jumping into the sea. A multi-agency search operation was launched immediately, involving the Ulwe Police, maritime security forces, and coastal police teams, but he could not be located.
Police found Raskar’s mobile phone, driving licence, and Aadhaar card inside the parked SUV, which they used to trace and contact his family members. His brother-in-law, Dhiraj Jadhav (32), travelled from Pune and reached the Ulwe police station on Sunday morning, formally filing a missing person’s complaint around 9 am. Police subsequently handed over Raskar’s SUV to Jadhav.
Recounting the sequence of events, Jadhav told the Indian Express, “Pratik had left home on Saturday night saying he was going out for dinner. When he did not return till late and stopped answering his phone, we grew worried. On Sunday morning, the Ulwe police called to tell us that he had jumped off Atal Setu and that his vehicle had been found on the bridge. I rushed to the police station, but even as the search teams continued looking for him in the sea, he was not found, and we had to file a missing complaint.”
Jadhav added that there was no visible indication of financial distress. “Pratik did not appear to be going through any financial trouble, and he rarely spoke to the family about his work or personal matters. We have absolutely no idea what may have driven him to this – it has come as a complete shock to all of us,” he said.
Santosh Khandare, the investigating officer at Ulwe Police Station, said the search was still actively underway. “Our primary focus remains finding Pratik. Given the currents, it is difficult to determine where the body may have drifted, but our teams continue to search the area. At the same time, we are exploring all possible angles to understand what led him to take this step,” he said.
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Ulwe police stated that since there was no apparent financial crisis, that angle had been prima facie ruled out. They are now looking into Raskar’s personal life, including whether he was in a relationship and whether a possible breakup may have been a contributing factor. His call data records are being investigated to assist in the probe.
As of Wednesday evening, the body had not been recovered, and the search operation remained ongoing.
