Dr Anahita Pandole has been booked for rash and negligent driving causing the death of Cyrus Mistry, former head of Tata Sons. The Palghar police registered an FIR on Saturday and she will not be taken into custody until convicted.
She has been booked under Sections 304A (death due to negligence), 279 (rash driving), 336 (endangering lives), 337 (causing hurt), 338 (grievous hurt) of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 112 (limits of speed), 183 (driving at excessive speed) and 184 (dangerous driving) of the Motor Vehicles Act, besides Sections 14 (overtaking), 5 (duties of drivers/riders), and 6 (lane traffic) of the Motor Vehicle Driving Regulation.
A police official told The Indian Express that all sections in the FIR are bailable. The police will be recording her statement before producing her before a magistrate court. The accused can be granted bail on the same day. In a case of causing death due to negligence, police custody is not given as usually there is nothing to be recovered from the accused.
The investigation of the crash was given to Prashant Pardeshi, Sub-divisional police officer of the Jawahar division. The police have recorded the statements of the witnesses at the spot, said Balasaheb Patil, Superintendent of Palghar district. The Mercedes-Benz company in Pune carried out a technical analysis. The investigation combined with a report from RTO revealed that the car was going at a high speed. The crash happened while overtaking another vehicle.
The incident took place at 2.34 pm on 4 September 2022. The group of four was travelling from Gujarat to Mumbai when the accident happened over the Surya river bridge on NH 48.