Nagpur. Police have arrested the driver of a luxury car driven by Sanket, son of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Maharashtra unit president Chandrashekhar Bawankule, after the car hit several vehicles in Nagpur, an official said on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the opposition attacked the state government over the incident and demanded a fair probe into the case.
A senior police officer told PTI that Arjun Haware, who was driving the Audi car, was arrested on Monday night and later released on bail (at the local police station). According to the police, five people, including Sanket Bawankule, were in the Audi car that hit several vehicles in the Ramdaspeth area early Monday. According to him, Sanket was not driving the car at the time of the accident.
The officer said that on the complaint of Jitendra Sonkambale, a case has been registered for negligent driving and other offences. Sonkambale’s car was hit by an Audi car. The officer said that the occupants of the Audi car were returning from a beer bar in Dharampeth area when the accident took place. He said that the blood of the accused will also be tested to find out whether they were under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident.
He said, “We are investigating the incident by examining the CCTV footage, after which action will be taken on all aspects.” Bawankule’s son Sanket’s Audi car had hit several vehicles in the Ramdaspeth area. After which the police arrested Haware and a youth named Ronit Chittamwar, who was riding in the car at the time of the accident.
According to an official of Sitabuldi police station in Nagpur, the Audi car first hit the car of complainant Jitendra Sonkambale at 1 am on Sunday night and then hit a moped, injuring two youths riding on it. After the incident, Chandrashekhar Bawankule admitted that the Audi car was registered in the name of his son Sanket.
The BJP leader said, “The police should conduct a thorough and impartial investigation into the accident without any bias. A case should be registered against those found guilty and appropriate action should be taken against them. I have not spoken to any police officer. The law should be equal for all.” The accident has become a major controversy ahead of the assembly elections proposed in Maharashtra at the end of the year, with the opposition accusing the ruling ‘Mahayuti’ alliance, which also includes the BJP, of protecting the son of a senior political leader by blaming the driver for the accident.
Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday targeted Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, saying that he is not fit to lead the state’s home department. Talking to reporters in Mumbai, Raut said, “According to our information, BJP state president Chandrashekhar Bawankule’s son was allegedly drunk. His car hit six other cars and four people were injured, two of whom are battling for life in a hospital in Nagpur.” Raut said that surprisingly, his name is not in the FIR and the car’s number plate was removed after the accident.
He alleged, “Bawankule’s son hit (other vehicles) twice with his car, but the CCTV footage was deleted as usual. If the car is registered in the name of BJP state president Bawankule or his son, then why was the number plate deleted? Bawankule’s son was driving the car. But when the accident happened, it was shown that the driver (some other person) was driving the car. This is an attempt to suppress the matter.” Leader of Opposition in the Assembly and Congress MLA Vijay Wadettiwar demanded an impartial investigation into the case. He said that BJP leaders are “drunk with power and money.”
Wadettiwar said a new precedent is being set in Maharashtra where the owner of a car will “murder” people and blame the driver for it and make him a “scapegoat”. “It is being said that the car was being driven at a speed of 150 kmph. Fortunately, no one died in the accident. It has become clear that Bawankule’s son drove the vehicle at a very high speed, which led to the accident,” the Congress leader alleged.
Wadettiwar claimed that the police destroyed evidence to save Bawankule’s son. He said, “It has also become clear that the police have tried to save the accused.” Hitting back at the opposition, senior BJP leader Fadnavis said that it is not right to politicise the case only to target his party colleague Chandrashekhar Bawankule.
Fadnavis said that the police is investigating the matter and has also registered an FIR. The Deputy Chief Minister said, “The police have presented all the facts. It is not right to do politics only to target Bawankule.” On the other hand, BJP leader Raosaheb Danve said that action will be taken against the “culprit” of the incident and the law will do its job in the case.