MLA In Police Station At 3 AM, Delayed Alcohol Test: Pune Porsche Accident Sparks Outrage On Conduct Of Judicial System

Aneesh Awadhiya and Ashwani Koshta, engineers working in Pune’s Kalyani Nagar, were killed when a speeding Porsche, allegedly driven by a 17-year-old, hit their motorcycle around 2:30 am on 19 May. The accused's father is a prominent realtor in Pune.

A slew of incidents have happened since then which have raised serious questions about the conduct of the judicial system in our country with doubts being expressed about possible attempts to shield the accused.

1. Local MLA arrives at police station at 3 am

Local MLA Sunil Tingre arrived at the police station at 3 am, shortly after the incident, having received a call from the teen’s father less than an hour later.

Tingre explained that his assistant and he received a call from the teen’s father at 3:20 am, stating his son was involved in an accident and was being attacked by a crowd. Tingre rushed to the scene but found the boy had already been taken to Yerawada police station.

Tingre claims he did not pressure the police, stating, "You can check my call records… I have not made any call to a police officer or politician to weaken the case against the accused. My political opponents are spreading falsehoods to defame me."

2. Has the MLA offered pizza and water to the accused?

There have been allegations that MLA Tingre offered pizza and water to the accused at the police station.

However, Tingre denied the allegations, asserting, "I did not meet the boy nor did I have a word with him… How can I offer him pizza?"

Tingre stated he left the police station around 6 am and later called the teen’s father and met with police officials to get an update on the case.

"By that time, the case had already been decided. Where is the question of my influencing the case?… If I had any such intention, I could have protected him and not allowed his name to come out," he said.

3. Delay in conduction of blood alcohol test

The Pune police have also faced criticism for allegedly failing to build a strong case, which allowed the accused to be released on bail with conditions like performing social work for 15 days and writing an essay.

The police conducted the blood alcohol test at 11 am, over eight hours after the accident.

Retired Bombay High Court judge B G Kolse-Patil criticised the delay, stating it weakened the case as alcohol could have left the teen's system, leading to a negative report.

Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar acknowledged the delay, attributing it to managing the situation and the crowd.

"The boy was taken to Sassoon Hospital around 9 am and the sample was collected around 11 am. We are trying to find out the reason behind the delay," he said.

4. Police denies charges of external pressure

Commissioner Kumar mentioned that the police initially filed charges under Section 304(A) (causing death by negligence) of the IPC.

Upon gathering more information, they upgraded the charges to Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), which was included in the remand application submitted to the Juvenile Justice Board on Sunday.

Kumar denied any external pressure on the police, asserting they had filed the most serious charges possible against the accused.