On Saturday morning, the Pune police crime branch arrested the grandfather of a minor who allegedly caused a fatal accident by crashing a speeding Porsche into a motorcycle, resulting in the deaths of two young software engineers. The grandfather is accused of threatening the driver and holding him captive to coerce him into taking responsibility for the accident instead of his grandson. So far, seven people have been arrested in connection with the case, and the minor is currently detained in an observation home.
The crime branch officials detained the grandfather on Thursday and interrogated him about various aspects of the case. They recorded his statement and arranged a face-to-face meeting with the driver to establish the sequence of events and corroborate the facts. Assistant Commissioner of Police (crime) Sunil Tambe confirmed the arrest and stated, “A detailed statement will be issued during the day.”
The grandfather, who is the CMD of a real estate firm that purchased the supercar, had previously informed the police that he had given the Porsche keys to his grandson with his son’s consent.
Following a request from the Pune police, the Juvenile Justice Board modified its earlier order and remanded the minor to the Nehru Udyog Kendra Observation Home for 14 days until June 5. The minor’s father, who was earlier arrested for allowing his son to drive the supercar without a license, registration, or number plates, and for consenting to his son’s consumption of alcohol, is currently lodged in Yerawada Central Prison after the district court granted him judicial custody for 14 days.
The tragic incident occurred early on Sunday morning when the reportedly inebriated minor was driving the Porsche sports car and collided with two motorcycle-borne software engineers, Aneesh Awadhiya, 24, and Ashwini Koshta, 24, both of whom were killed.
The case and the subsequent bail granted to the minor under the provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act drew sharp criticism and protests. Under the bail conditions, the minor was required to work with the Yerwada traffic police for 15 days and write a 300-word essay on the accident. Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who visited the city police commissionerate, described the order as “lenient, shocking, and surprising.” He further stated that the police had challenged the order in the district court and expected a fresh order regarding the cancellation of bail, describing the crime as heinous.
