Mihir Shah, the main accused in a hit-and-run case in Mumbai, has admitted to the police he was driving the vehicle that crashed into a two-wheeler and killed a woman, reported Hindustan Times on Thursday.
Arrested on Tuesday, Mihir Shah is the son of Rajesh Shah, a functionary of the Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction.
The crash took place in the Worli area of Mumbai on Sunday morning. The victim, identified as Kaveri Nakhwa, was a resident of Worli Koliwada. After the crash, she was dragged on the bonnet of the car for nearly two km.
Mihir Shah is suspected to have been drunk at the time of the crash. However, he has so far evaded questions about it from the police, Hindustan Times reported.
He told the police that he fled the spot due to fear of public fury, the newspaper reported. His family members said that they had left their homes for the same reason.
The Maharashtra Police had arrested Rajesh Shah on the day of the crash for allegedly failing to cooperate with the investigation. He had allegedly asked his son to flee and instructed the family driver, Rajrishi Rajendrasingh Bidawat, to take the wheel.
Bidawat was also arrested on Sunday and was remanded to police custody for a day on Monday.
The police had registered a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, rash driving and destruction of evidence, among others charges, under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita against Mihir Shah, Rajesh Shah and Bidawat. Provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act were also invoked.
A Mumbai court granted bail to Rajesh Shah on Monday. The Shinde Sena removed him from the post of the party’s deputy leader for Palghar district on Wednesday.
“Soon after the incident, Bidawat narrated the incident to Rajesh Shah, who asked him to take responsibility and urged Mihir to flee from the spot,” Hindustan Times quoted an unidentified police officer as saying.
After fleeing, Mihir Shah changed his location several times before being arrested on Tuesday afternoon.
His mother and sisters were also detained on the same day for allegedly helping him evade arrest. However, they were released after questioning.
On Wednesday, Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (Sewri court) SP Bhosale remanded Mihir Shah to police custody till July 16.
The police had demanded maximum custody of Mihir Shah, claiming that he tried to mislead them by trimming his hair and beard.
“We have to seize the number plate of the BMW [car] which we suspect the accused Mihir, and the driver Bidawat have destroyed,” the newspaper quoted public prosecutor Ravindra Patil as saying. “We also need to seize his mobile phone. We need to find the people the accused had called and those who helped him flee.”
Patil also said that there were discrepancies in the statements of Mihir Shah and Bidawat.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!