Woman killed as BMW hits two-wheeler: CM assures justice, Aaditya says ‘no political refuge’

PTI, Jul 7, 2024, 5:02 PM IST

A woman died after the two-wheeler on which she was travelling with her husband was hit by a BMW car in Mumbai’s Worli area in the early hours of Sunday, a police official said.

The woman, identified as Kaveri Nakhwa (45), was travelling with her husband Pradip on the arterial Annie Besant Road when the luxury car driver lost control at around 5:30am, the Worli police station official said.

“Kaveri Nakhwa fell on the road. Passersby alerted police about the incident. She was rushed to civic-run Nair Hospital where doctors declared her dead on arrival. Kaveri and her husband are fisherfolk and were on their way home in Worli Koliwada from Sassoon Dock in Colaba,” he said.

The driver of the car, Rajesh Shah, and one more occupant identified as Rajrishi Rajendrasingh Bidawat have been booked and detained, the Worli police station official said.

Speaking about the incident, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said the law was equal for everyone and no would be spared.

Asked if the man involved in the Mumbai accident was a Shiv Sena leader’s son, the CM just said, “The law is equal for all and the government sees every case in the same way. There will be no separate rule for this accident. Everything will be done as per the law.”

“The police will not shield anyone. The Mumbai accident is unfortunate. I have spoken to the police department to take strict action,” he added.

In a post on X, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and local MLA Aaditya Thackeray said he would not go into the “political leanings” of Shah but hoped “there will be no political refuge by the regime”.

“Visited the Worli Police Station today and met with senior police officers investigating into the hit and run case that occurred in Worli today. I will not go into the political leanings of Mr Shah, the accused of the hit and run, but I hope the police will act swiftly to catch the accused and bring him to justice. Hopefully there will be no political refuge by the regime,” Thackeray said.

Thackeray said he and his MLC colleague Sunil Shinde met Pradip Nakhwa, the victim’s husband, and promised all help to ensure the accused are brought to justice.

The case comes less than two months after the May 19 Porsche accident case in Pune’s Kalyani Nagar area.

Two IT professionals hailing from Madhya Pradesh were killed after the Porsche, allegedly driven by an inebriated minor driver, rammed into their motorcycle.

The case hit national headlines after the boy was given bail by the Juvenile Justice Board on lenient terms and the Pune police uncovered an effort allegedly involving the accused’s parents and doctors of Sassoon Hospital to switch blood samples to nullify alcohol tests and also force the family driver take blame for the crash.