In a brazen hit-and-run incident, a high-end BMW car allegedly driven by the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena’s deputy leader Rajesh Shah’s inebriated son Mihir Shah knocked down a two-wheeler, killing a woman and injuring her husband at Worli in south-central Mumbai in the early hours of Sunday.
The accused Mihir — who was behind the wheel at the time of the mishap — has gone absconding after the incident, while his father and driver Rajendra Singh Bijawat were detained by police for questioning immediately after the incident.
The mishap took place at 5.30 am between Atria Mall and Worli along the Mumbai Coastal Road, when a two-wheeler occupied by two fishmongers — Kaveri and Pradik Nakva — was rammed into by a speeding BMW allegedly driven by Mihir from behind.
Kaveri and Pradik were returning from the Sassoon Dock at Colaba in south Mumbai after purchasing fish stock at an auction, which they sell at a local market. After being hit by the speeding car, the two were thrown into the air and they crash-landed on the bonnet of the SUV.
However, the speeding car fled from the spot. Kaveri (45) was immediately taken to a nearby hospital where she was declared dead before admission. Paradik sustained severe wounds.
Police sources said Mihir consumed alcohol at a bar with some of his friends at Juhu in north-west Mumbai and later left for home. En-route, he insisted that he would drive the vehicle and took over the wheel from the driver in a drunken state.
The Worli police have registered a case under the various provisions of the newly-introduced Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Motor Vehicles Act.
The Worli police are securing the CCTV footage of the bar where Mihir and his friends consumed liquor.
The police are also looking for the absconding Mihir. The investigators have, meanwhile, recovered the BMW car involved in the mishap from Bandra in north-west Mumbai.
On his part, Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shinde Sena chief Eknath Shinde has ordered a thorough probe into the incident.
“What has happened is unfortunate, very sad... Law will take its own course, everyone is equal before the law. I have spoken to the police and strict action will be taken against those found guilty,” he said.
In a related development, former Minister and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and party chief Uddhav Thackeray’s son Aaditya Thackeray, who is an MLA from Worli, demanded immediate action against the accused.
Fisherman Pradik — who survived the mishap said, “It happened in front of me… the car rammed us. I saw him inside the car, driving…I asked him to stop, however, he fled the scene.”
