A shocking murder in Navi Mumbai has raised concerns about the safety of transport workers in the wake of an 18-year-old rickshaw driver being murdered over a fare dispute when an 18-year-old rickshaw driver was killed in the early morning of August 29 in the vicinity of Mini Sea-Shore Garden in Vashi. Two 20-year-old suspects have been arrested in connection with the killing.
The victim has been identified as Sujankumar Feku Mahato, a resident of Ghansoli. Mahato was a rickshaw driver and took two passengers near Koparkhairane railway station at 3:36 a.m. The passengers asked him to take them to Mankhurd. What was a routine late-night journey turned into a violent confrontation when the rickshaw arrived at the Vashi area.
Police said Mahato was informed of another passenger and told the two men to get out of the vehicle. The driver and passengers had an argument about the fare and the journey, and it took a violent turn.
The two passengers are accused of attacking Mahato with a sharp weapon. The young driver suffered serious injuries to his neck, head and hands, the report said. Not much information about whether Mahato died at the scene or after being taken for medical treatment has been revealed.
After attacking the driver, the suspects took his rickshaw and fled from the area, investigators said. A probe into the incident was handled by Navi Mumbai Crime Branch and Vashi police on the spot. The early morning crime and the suspects, investigators were able to reconstruct the suspects’ movements from technical evidence and surveillance video.
Police teams monitored CCTV recordings along the route of the rickshaw. Technical investigators also used the investigation to find possible locations and movements of suspects. The joint investigation led police to the Mankhurd area where the two suspects were soon arrested.
The arrested suspects are 20-year-old Sahil Ananda Surve and 20-year-old Sahil Yashwant Kharat. Police are now investigating them for their individual roles in the alleged murder and the circumstances that led to the confrontation. Evidence collected during the investigation will also show the exact sequence of events before and after the attack.
Surve has a previous criminal history, police records say. He had been booked in a case concerning attempted murder and provisions of the Arms Act. He was released on bail on October 7, 2025, according to the information available.
The killing has raised concerns among local residents and transport community members since it was an argument while a passenger was going through the city. Rickshaw and taxi drivers are often working at night and early morning when they are exposed to more danger when transporting passengers.
The case also shows how rapidly fare disputes or travel plans escalate when tensions aren’t managed. Fare disputes can usually be resolved in a conversation or intervention, but in this case, it was alleged that a weapon was used.
The Navi Mumbai Police investigation is ongoing, and more evidence is to be collected by the police before the full circumstances of Mahato's death are known. The arrests are a step in the right direction in this case, but investigators still have to determine the motive, sequence of events, and role of both suspects.
The 18-year-old driver’s death has also brought renewed attention to the safety of young workers in the city’s informal transport sector. The authorities would need to be able to find out what happened on the day of the last journey and what led to the fatal confrontation at Vashi.
