Culpable homicide charge dropped in 2020 Marine Drive accident case: ‘Cannot be assumed that youngster had knowledge that collision will cause friend’s death’
Shourya Jain will now face trial before a magistrate court under sections, including section 279 (rash and negligent driving) IPC.
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The Mumbai police had booked Shourya Jain, who was then 19 years old, under section 304 (II) of the Indian Penal Code (File Photo)OBSERVING THAT he was not aware that a collision of his car would cause the death of his 18-year-old friend, a sessions court in a recent order dropped the stringent charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder against a youngster, booked for an accident at Marine Drive in 2020.
The Mumbai police had booked Shourya Jain, who was then 19 years old, under section 304 (II) of the Indian Penal Code, which has a maximum punishment of 10 years, alleging that he had no driving licence then and had driven his car at a high speed in a rash and negligent manner, causing a collision into a stationary bus, leading to his friend’s death.
“It needs to be noted that this is not a case of drunk and drive to attribute knowledge of an untoward incident… the applicant-driver (Jain) himself suffered severe injuries in the incident. The incident can at the most be the result of rash or negligent act of the applicant,” the court said in its order passed on October 9.
It said that as per previous orders of the Supreme Court, the act of the accused to drive the car at a high speed and without a licence can be seen as “rash”. Jain will now face trial before a magistrate court under sections, including section 279 (rash and negligent driving) IPC.
On May 12, 2020, Jain and his friend, Aryaman Nagpal, the son of a hotelier, left towards their residences in Napean Sea Road after meeting friends at Churchgate, around 4pm. While Jain did not have a driving licence, he drove his car with Nagpal sitting on the front seat. At Marine Drive, the car dashed into a stationary bus. Both of them suffered injuries and were taken to the hospital where Nagpal succumbed to his injuries.
Jain’s lawyers had submitted in court that the bus had no indicator lights and hence could not be noticed. He further said that he had previously also driven Nagpal home and had no knowledge or intent to put the life of his friend in danger. It was also submitted that he had himself suffered severe injuries.
Not having a driving licence alone cannot be a ground to invoke the serious charge, his lawyers had submitted. The prosecution and the intervener, the father of the deceased youngster, both opposed the plea to drop the charge, stating that Jain did not have a licence and had driven the car at a high speed.
“…the material available on record clearly demonstrates that though applicant no. 1 (Jain) drove the car in a rash and negligent manner in excessive speed, he was not aware about the bus parked on the road…..the knowledge that car would collide on bus and thereby death of his friend would be caused, cannot be assumed,” the court said.
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