Hours after Pune Police suspended two policemen for alleged dereliction of duty in connection with the May 19 car crash in which a Porsche driven by a 17-year-old youngster killed two techies from Madhya Pradesh, the investigation of the case was transferred to the crime branch from the Yerawada police station on Friday evening.
According to Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar, the investigation was transferred to the crime branch to bring a coordinated approach.
“The crime branch was already investigating the offence registered against the father of the juvenile and owner and staffers of two liquor serving establishments (which the teenager had allegedly visited before the accident),” he noted.
Elsewhere, the Madhya Pradesh-based parents of the two IT professionals who were killed in the accident on May 19 demanded that the Supreme Court monitor the probe and that the trial be held in their state.
Pune Porsche Crash: What We Know So Far| Top Points
- A Pune court on Friday remanded Vishal Agarwal, father of the minor allegedly involved in a car crash and five other accused in the case in judicial custody till June 7. Agarwal and the other five accused were produced before additional sessions judge S P Ponkshe after their police custody came to an end.
- The other accused are Naman Bhutada, owner of Cosie Restaurant, its manager Sachin Katkar; manager of Black Club Sandip Sangale and its employees Jayesh Gavkar and Nitesh Shevani.
- The prosecution had demanded an extension of their police custody for further probe. But the court remanded Agarwal and others including the owner and employees of two liquor-serving establishments — where the teenager had allegedly consumed alcohol before his Porsche car knocked down two software professionals on a motorbike — in judicial custody instead.
- Agarwal, a real estate developer, was arrested under sections 75 and 77 of the Juvenile Justice Act, while the others were booked for allegedly serving alcohol to an underage person.
- Section 75 deals with “willful neglect of a child, or exposing a child to mental or physical illnesses,” while section 77 deals with supplying a child with intoxicating liquor or drugs.
- According to the FIR , despite knowing that his son did not have a valid driving license, Agarwal (50) gave him the car, thus endangering the teenager’s life, and allowed him to party even when Agarwal knew that he consumed liquor.
- During the hearing on Friday, the prosecution while seeking an extension of the police custody told the court that Section 420 (cheating) of the IPC has been added to the charges against Agarwal over non-payment of RTO fees towards the Porsche’s registration.
- Attempts were made to make it appear that the minor was not at the wheel and some adult person was driving the car at the time of the accident in the early hours of May 19, Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar had said earlier.
- There was enough evidence showing that the teenager was driving the car, police commissioner Amitesh Kumar told reporters.
- “We have the CCTV footage of him (juvenile) drinking liquor in the pub…..He was fully in his senses, he had full knowledge that due to his conduct, such an accident, where IPC section 304 is applicable, can happen,” Kumar said. Section 304 deals with culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
- The two officers–Inspector Rahul Jagdale and Assistant Inspector Vishwanath Todkar– both attached to the Yerawada police station under which Kalyaninagar falls, were suspended on Friday.
- According to officials, Jagdale and Todkar were present in the police station at the time of the accident at around 2.30 a.m. on May 19. They have been accused of dereliction of duty besides not alerting their senior officers about the major mishap that has sparked a nationwide furore.
- In a related development, hundreds of bar and pub owners in Pune demonstrated wearing black T-shirts against the clampdown on their businesses, saying the move would render over 60,000 people unemployed, making it difficult for them to take care of their families.
- They also slammed the demands by various Opposition parties, including the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party (SP), CPM, and other social groups to ban bars/pubs for flouting rules and regulations.
- The demonstrations came after the Pune authorities initiated city-wide action against more than 40 bars and pubs for violating different rules and regulations following Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis’ stern warning earlier this week.
- Meanwhile, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday said stringent action should be taken in the car crash case in Pune, in which a 17-year-old accused fatally knocked down two persons.
Details of the Accident
The Porsche car, allegedly driven by the teenager, who the police claim was drunk at the time, fatally knocked down two motorbike-borne software engineers at Kalyani Nagar in Maharashtra’s Pune city in the early hours of May 19.
The teenager, son of real estate developer Vishal Agarwal (50), was subsequently produced before the JJB which granted him bail hours later. Police later approached the JJB again, seeking a review of its order.
Following an outcry over quick bail, the JJB May 22 remanded the boy to the observation home till June 5.
The Child-in-Conflict with Law (CCL) was immediately sent to the Nehru Udyog Kendra observation home, located at Yerawada, where he is staying with the other CCLs.
The police have already arrested the teenager’s father, who is a prominent city-based builder.
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