A crime scene reconstruction and a manhunt: Latest in Gurgaon hit-and-run

Police argued that their physical custody was essential to conduct raids and apprehend the absconding individuals.

The prosecution further stated that investigators need to take the accused back to the scene of the crime to reconstruct the sequence of events leading up to the crash, followed by sustained, in-depth questioning.

The counsel representing the accused opposed the custody plea. Advocates Bhadresh Harikant, Payal Khatana, and Harish Khatana, appearing for Bainsla, and Advocate Bharat Singh Khatana, representing Gurjar, argued that the men had been falsely implicated, that custodial interrogation was uncalled for, and that they were willing to cooperate with the probe.

Kalyan Bainsla was purportedly driving the car that hit Shivani Chauhan (Sia). (Source: Express Photo)

The magistrate, however, noted that the accused face serious charges of rash driving, act endangering life or personal safety, stalking, word, gesture, or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), attempt to murder) and joint criminal liability.

The court held that custodial remand was warranted to facilitate a fair probe, nab the co-accused, and interrogate the duo thoroughly.

To safeguard the rights of the accused, the court instructed the investigating officer to conduct medico-legal examinations before and after the remand period, place the roznamcha (daily diary) and route records of all areas visited on record, and ensure immediate production before a Duty Magistrate should the accused retract their disclosure statements.

Meanwhile, police sources said a five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) is being constituted to take over the probe. The SIT will comprise the Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime Against Women), the Sohna Crime Branch in-charge, the Sector 56 SHO, and two other police personnel.

The incident occurred on Sunday when Delhi-based biker Shivani Chauhan (27), who goes by the moniker ‘Sia’ on social media, was riding her Aprilia RS 457 sports bike with a group along Golf Course Road. Video footage from dashcam and helmet cameras showed a white Maruti Suzuki Ciaz aggressively tailing the group, making sudden lane cuts, and gesturing at Chauhan before colliding with her motorcycle. Chauhan was thrown onto the road as the vehicle sped away.

Police later seized the Ciaz, which belongs to an Army personnel posted in Assam from whom Bainsla had borrowed it two days prior to the incident.

Bainsla, a resident of Chandhat in Palwal, and Gurjar were tracked down and arrested near Rajgarh in Rajasthan by the Sohna Crime Branch on Tuesday.

According to investigators,

Bainsla had also made a brief bid to escape custody during transit on the pretext of urinating, sustaining minor injuries before being recaptured.

Chauhan in her statements to the police and a magistrate had said there were four persons in the car.