Pune Porsche Accident: Minor Driver Released From Observation Home

A 17-year-old boy allegedly crashed his car into two persons on a bike, killing them on the spot in the wee hours of May 19, in Kalyan Nagar, Pune. According to the latest reports, the minor, who was ordered to stay in a child observation home has now been released, as ordered by the Bombay High Court. The judge stated, "We are bound by law, the aims and objectives of the Juvenile Justice Act and must treat him as any child in conflict with law, despite the seriousness of the crime." The plea for his release was filed by his aunt, who will be his guardian after he is out.

The HC judge said, "He is already under rehabilitation which is a primary objective and already referred to a psychologist and the sessions with the psychologist shall be continued." The accused, the son of a well-known real estate developer, was reportedly drunk at the time of the accident. The victims, Anish Awadhiya and Ashwini Koshta, both 24 years old, were engineers from Madhya Pradesh. 

17YO Drunk Driver Kills Two On Bike

The accused boy was reportedly drunk driving his father's Porsche Taycan car at over 150 kilometres per hour when he crashed into Awadhia and Koshta at around 2:15 a.m. and fled the scene. The impact was so high that Koshta was sent flying and Awadhiya landed on a car. Eyewitnesses reported that the minor's car did not even have a number plate. 

An autorickshaw driver in the area who witnessed the accident told NDTV, "The driver was fleeing after the car hit the bike, but the airbags deployed. He could not see the road and parked the car. And locals caught them. Besides the driver, there were two other occupants in the car. One of them escaped. The crowd beat up the other two."

The minor driver reportedly returned from a pub with his friends where they were partying to celebrate clearing their Class 12 exams. He is four months short of turning 18, the minimum age to get a driver's licence in India. An FIR was registered under sections relating to death by negligence and rash driving.

The teenager was released on bail within 15 hours, his lawyer Prashant Patil told the media, adding that the order came with strict conditions: he must work with the traffic police in Yerwada for two weeks, write an essay on road accidents, seek treatment for his drinking problem, and take up counselling sessions. 

However, as public outrage escalated, the juvenile court later scrapped the bail. Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar told the media that the teenager would undergo trial as an adult. "The operative order was communicated to us by the Juvenile Justice Board and the said juvenile accused has been sent to the remand home for 15 days, till June 5,” he said.

Four Arrests In Case

On May 30, police reported that the blood sample collected at Sassoon Hospital had been swapped with that of a woman. Dr Ajay Taware, the head of the state-run hospital's forensic medicine department, was allegedly involved in the matter. He reportedly instructed another doctor, Shrihari Halnor, to send the teenager's mother's blood sample to the forensic lab.

“After the accident, the (Yerawada) police station had sent the juvenile, his two friends who were with him in the car and (family) driver to Sassoon General Hospital for giving blood samples. Of these samples, the juvenile's blood sample was swapped. Their (other three samples') results also came nil (no traces of alcohol were found)," police told the Press Trust of India.

According to reports, Dr Taware had frequent phone conversations with Vishal Agarwal, the father of the accused, raising suspicions of potential collusion. Pune police suspected that the calls between Dr Taware and Agarwal were orchestrated to discuss the "change of blood sample," particularly when samples were being collected for testing. 

While the blood samples from Sassoon did not match the accused, another sample collected by police for DNA testing at a different government hospital, matched both the minor accused and the father. During police interrogation, the doctor admitted to switching the blood sample. A three-person committee has been allocated to investigate the blood sample swap case.

Reports state that the doctors swapped his blood samples at the hospital, allegedly at the behest of his father. More reports have claimed that a driver who works for the family was forced by the teenager's grandfather to take the blame in exchange for money. The case has thrown light on the extent to which people in power go to avoid accountability. 

Victims' Families Demand Strict Action

Ashwini Koshta and Anish Awadhiya's families have demanded strict action for the minor driver's and his guardians' negligence. Ashwini Koshta's inconsolable mother Mamata told PTI, "We were supposed to send her off in a doli (palanquin) to her future groom's house after her marriage, but now we were forced to carry her body on a bier."

Koshta's uncle Sachin Bokde said, "We are in shock. It is condemnable that he should get bail in 15 hours. He and his parents should be investigated. We will discuss the matter once Ashwini’s last rites are over. We want his bail cancelled and he should remain in police custody. Because of him, an innocent girl, who has seen nothing of life, died."

Awadhiya's mother told NDTV, "It is the boy's mistake, you can even call it murder because if he had not made such a big mistake, no one would have died. If only his family members had paid attention, then today my son would have been alive. He should face the strictest punishment. They are trying very hard to save him."

The victims' relatives brought attention to the negligence of the teenager's parents and criticised the pub for serving alcohol to minors. The deceased man's uncle Satish Awadhiya said, “The way things are going, I do not see we are getting any justice. For using rules in his favour, he is a minor but when he is driving that car given by his parents, he is not a minor."