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A legislator making a late-night visit to a police station that had detained a 17-year-old boy accused of crushing under his car two information technology (IT) workers in Pune has led to allegations that there is interference in the investigation.
The boy was given a blood alcohol test eight hours after he was detained and media reports said the Juvenile Justice Board treated him leniently.
The accident occurred around 2.15 am on Sunday in the Kalyani Nagar area of Pune, when the boy at the wheels of a Porsche allegedly crashed into a motorcycle, killing Anis Awadhiya and Ashwini Costa. Amitesh Kumar, Pune’s police commissioner, said the minor had been celebrating his Class 12 results at a nearby pub, where he was seen consuming alcohol before the collision. In Maharashtra, the legal drinking age is 25. Consequently, the owners of the bar are also facing charges for serving alcohol to a minor.
The police have charged the minor with rash and negligent driving and causing harm by endangering life or personal safety under IPC Sections 304A, 279, 337, 338, and 427, as well as relevant sections of the Maharashtra Motor Vehicle Act. Following the accident, the Pune Police arrested the father of the teen from Aurangabad in Maharashtra on Tuesday.
Local MLA Sunil Tingre at police station
Sunil Tingre, the local MLA, was reportedly contacted by the father of the teenager and arrived at the police station. Tingre said his presence was not intended to exert pressure on the police. “You can check my call records... I have not made any call to a police officer or politician to make the case weak against the accused. My political opponents are trying to spread canards to defame me,” a report by the Indian Express quoted him as saying.
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Tingre said he and his assistant received a call from the father of the teenager at 3:20 am. “He told me his son was involved in an accident and a crowd was beating him up... I rushed to the spot, but the boy had already been taken to the Yerwada police station. I went there, but the inspector was not present. He came after more than an hour. There was a lot of crowd present outside,” the MLA said.
He further said, “After he (inspector) told me the severity of the case, I told him to act as per the law. When I came out, I met his father and told him about the accident. The boy’s father also learnt about the deaths after reaching the police station. I left around 6 am.”
On allegations that he brought pizza for the accused teen, the MLA said, “I did not meet the boy nor did I have a word with him... How can I offer him pizza?”
Tingre said he met police officials in the evening to get an update on the case. The report quoted him as saying, “By that time, the case had already been decided. Where is the question of my influencing the case?... If I had any such intention, I could have protected him and not allowed his name to come out.”
Delayed blood test
The police conducted the blood sample test of the teen at 11 am, more than eight hours later. Police Commissioner Kumar said, “After the accident, the police team was busy handling the situation and the crowd. But yes, there was a delay in conducting the blood sample test. The boy was taken to the Sassoon Hospital around 9 am and the sample was collected around 11 am. We are trying to find out the reason behind the delay.”
