Wreckage of the Mercedes car in which businessman and former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry was traveling after an accident in Palghar in September 2022. , Photo Credit: PTI
A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed before the Bombay High Court, seeking a direction to the court to add culpable homicide not amounting to murder in the First Information Report (FIR) against Dr. Anahita Pandole, who was driving the car which crashed along with the former Tata Sons. Chairman Cyrus Mistry passed away.
The PIL filed by Sandesh Jedhe has urged the court to direct Kasa police station in Palghar district to add IPC section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) to the FIR registered against Dr. Pandole.
On September 4, 2022, Dr. Pandole was driving a car on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway when it crashed, killing Mistry and Jehangir Pandole, and injuring her and her husband.
Hearing the petition, a division bench of Acting Chief Justice SV Gangapurwala and Justice Sandeep Marne said, ‘It is the work of the magistrate. It is the Magistrate who can decide what charges to lay. You (petitioner) want the High Court to act as a magistrate? What is your location? How concerned are you in this matter?
Mr Jedhe’s counsel Sadiq Ali claimed that his client had evidence that Dr Pandole was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident. In his petition, Mr Jedhe cited a CCTV footage which shows Dr Pandole allegedly consuming alcohol at a cafe the night before the accident.
Senior advocate Aabad Ponda, appearing for Dr. Pandole, said, “It is based on the presumption that she was under the influence of alcohol. The tests were done by the police. “The tests were negative,” said public prosecutor Aruna Kamat Pai.
Advocate Ali, however, said that he had more material to prove his case. The court adjourned the hearing of the case to January 17.