Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
A Mumbai court on Wednesday granted bail to a businessman arrested in connection with a fatal car accident that occurred on February 5 in Mumbai’s Ghatkopar area, allegedly caused by his minor son while driving an SUV.
Additional Sessions Judge R M Jadhav allowed the bail on a bond of Rs 50,000, observing prima facie that the father had no knowledge of the boy taking out the vehicle for a drive. The court relied mainly on the statement of a watchman of the building where the businessman resides while granting relief.
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According to police, the businessman’s minor son was driving a Kia Seltos when it collided with a scooter near Somaiya College, killing its rider, Dhrumil Patel. Patel’s wife Meenal, who was riding pillion, sustained grievous injuries in the crash.
The boy’s father was arrested on February 10 and booked under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita related to rash driving, culpable homicide not amounting to murder and acts endangering life, along with relevant sections of the Motor Vehicles Act.
During the hearing, the accused’s lawyer Manish Singh argued that the businessman was neither present at the accident spot nor driving the vehicle at the time of the incident. The defence maintained that he had no knowledge that his son had taken the car on the day of the accident.
Public Prosecutor P B Bankar opposed the bail plea, contending that the father had allowed his son to drive despite knowing the minor did not possess a valid licence.
Advocate Ruben Mascarenhas, representing the victim’s family, told the court that the minor ran an Instagram account featuring reckless driving stunts and alleged that the father was aware of this behaviour. He further claimed the accused offered Rs 40 lakh to the victim’s family to settle the case and that the minor’s Instagram history was tampered with.
However, the court relied on the watchman’s statement, which said that around 10.15 pm on the day of the accident, the teenager asked him for the car keys that were in his possession. Without questioning him, the watchman handed over the keys because the boy was the son of the accused.
The court noted that when the father later came to the parking area and found the vehicle missing, he asked the watchman, who informed him that the car had been taken by his son.
“Prima facie, the material on record goes to show that the applicant was not having knowledge of the fact that at the time of the incident his son took the vehicle,” the court observed in its order, according to news agency PTI.
While granting bail, the court directed the businessman not to leave Mumbai without its permission and not to attempt to influence witnesses in the case.
– Ends
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
