Prateek Tanmay
3 min readPuneJun 2, 2026 10:45 PM IST
ONCE INCARCERATED together for the murder of a local politician in Shirur, two former gang associates eventually became bitter rivals. The feud culminated in a fatal shooting on Monday evening, with one of them — Vishal Kale (31) — being gunned down within days of his release from prison.
Police said the incident took place in Karde Ghat near Saradwadi village in Shirur around 5.30 pm on Monday. An FIR has been registered at Shirur police station on a complaint filed by Kale’s cousin, Umesh Jagdale. Around 3.30 pm on Monday, Kale, Jagdale and another relative, Kedar Chandrakant Zadage (25), had come to Shirur for a business deal. While they were leaving, Jagdale’s car was rammed by another vehicle, causing its airbags to deploy.
At that point, some assailants opened fire on Kale. As Kale, Jagdale and Zadage got out of the car and tried to flee, the attackers chased them and continued firing. Kale was hit by bullets, while Zadage was attacked with an unidentified weapon. Though shots were fired at Jagdale, he escaped unhurt. The attackers then allegedly bludgeoned Kale with stones. Investigation later revealed that the main attacker was Sunny Yadav, a former gang associate of Kale.
“Sunny Yadav and Vishal Kale were arrested in 2016 as key accused in the murder of Shirur municipal councillor Mahendra Mallav. At the time, the two were part of a criminal gang allegedly headed by history-sheeter Nilesh Kurlap. The duo remained lodged in prison together following their arrest. In 2020, both were released on emergency bail granted to a large number of undertrials during the Covid-19 pandemic. After his release, Kale allegedly absconded for a period. He was later named in an attempted murder case registered in Shirur in 2022 and remained on the run in that case as well,” said an officer who is part of the probe.
“In 2025, Kale was arrested by the Pimpri Chinchwad police under the Arms Act for allegedly possessing illegal weapons. Kale believed Yadav had tipped off the police, leading to his arrest. Following his incarceration in the Arms Act case, he was also taken into custody in connection with the 2016 murder case and the 2022 attempted murder case pending in Shirur. These developments deepened the rift between the former associates, with Kale allegedly harbouring a grudge against Yadav and expressing his intention to eliminate him,” the officer added.
Investigators suspect that after Kale secured bail and was recently released from prison, Yadav’s group kept him under surveillance and tracked his movements. On Monday evening, Yadav and his associates allegedly intercepted the vehicle in which Kale was travelling. Police have booked Sunny Yadav, his associate Vishal Pandi, and at least five other accomplices for murder and attempt to murder. A coordinated manhunt was launched after the accused allegedly fled the scene following the attack.
