Son of Shiv Sena Cabinet Minister Bharat Gogawale, Vikas Gogawale. File
| Photo Credit: Sujit Gupta
Vikas Gogawale, the son of Shiv Sena Cabinet Minister Bharat Gogawale, has surrendered before the police, informed the Maharashtra government to the Bombay High Court on Friday (January 23, 2026), a day after the Court rapped the government for the delay in arresting him in a case.
Advocate General Milind Sathe on Friday (January 23) submitted written communication from Mahad police station, Raigad district, stating that the eight accused, including Vivek and his cousin Mahesh Gogawale, surrendered before the police at 9:15 a.m..
The police also confirmed the arrest. The Mahad police official said, “In Mahad city, two FIRs were filed. The eight accused in one FIR have surrendered, and the investigation is underway. The accused are identified as Vikas Gogawale, Mahesh Gogawale, Vijay Malusare, Vaibhav Malusare, Dhananjay Malusare , Prashant Shelar, and others.”
Vikas and other accused were absconding in a case related to violent clashes that flared during polling for the Mahad Municipal Council elections on December 2. After the clash between Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde group) supporters and NCP supporters, cross-FIRs were filed by both sides. In one FIR, Vikas and his supporters were named as accused, and in another, Shreeyash Jagtap, the son of former NCP MLA Manik Jagtap, and his supporters were accused.
Mr. Shreeyash withdrew his application after the Court refused to provide any relief. On Friday (January 23) evening, he and his three supporters, Dhananjay Deshmukh, Nilesh Mahadik, and Jagdish Pawar, surrendered before the police.
On Thursday (January 22), the Bombay HC was hearing a case anticipatory bail plea of Shreeyash Jagtap, which was rejected, stating “seriousness” of the crime, while criticizing the government over failure to arrest Vikas, stating, “Government can arrest anybody within 24 hours if it wishes to.”
Justice Madhav Jamdar also observed why the Cabinet Minister (Bharat Gogawale) is honoured when his son is absconding. It is all political, reflecting that the rule of law in the State has adversely affected. During the same hearing, the Lawyer Sathe requested the court to hear the matter again on Friday (January 23), assuring Vivek would surrender as his father would contact him.
Earlier, the Bombay HC on December 23 rejected the bail plea of Vikas, while on December 29, Shreeyash was granted interim protection from arrest. On January 17, the court was informed that despite all the efforts by the police, Vikas was not under arrest.
Published – January 24, 2026 10:24 am IST
