‘Negligent Driving Deaths Are Bailable’: Lawyer of Delhi BMW Crash Accused Argues as He Calls Charges Against Gaganpreet ‘Unfortunate’

Delhi: The counsel for the accused in the Delhi BMW accident near Dhaula Kuan has stated that while deaths caused by negligent driving are bailable offenses, in this case, the offense is being treated as non-bailable by adding certain sections.

Advocate Vikas Pahwa has further claimed that the FIR in the incident contradicts statements made by the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) during a press conference.

"We reviewed the FIR, which was registered 10 hours after the incident. The incident occurred at 1:30 p.m., and the FIR was filed at 11:30 p.m. The information in the FIR contradicts the DCP's press conference. It seems incorrect," Pahwa told ANI.

"If someone dies due to rash and negligent driving, it is a bailable offense. Attempting to turn it into a non-bailable offense by adding certain sections is unfortunate. The DCP stated that the accident occurred when the car crashed at a sharp turn. When the accident happened at a sharp turn, the front portion of the car collided first. Two people on a two-wheeler were hit and slammed into a DTC bus," Pahwa said.

"As per the CCTV footage, which was not provided in court, the accused, her husband, and their children were still in the car. Their airbags deployed, and they were also injured. This is not a case of rash and negligent driving. How can this be a case of Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder)? The allegation is that they took the victims to a hospital 45 minutes away," he added.

He stated that there is evidence that the accused spoke to the doctor on the phone about their arrival and asked them to prepare for the emergency.

"According to the taxi driver, the doctors treated the victims properly. They reached the hospital within 46 minutes, and at around 2:16 a.m., the victim was declared dead. The version in the FIR is the investigating officer's version. The accused has been granted two days of judicial custody. We have filed a bail application, and the hearing is scheduled for the day after tomorrow," Pahwa said.

The accused driver, Gaganpreet, was arrested by the Delhi Police on Monday and later remanded to judicial custody for two days by the court. The BMW car rammed into a motorcycle on Sunday, causing the motorcycle to collide with a bus on the left during the impact. Navjot Singh, an employee of the Ministry of Finance and a resident of Hari Nagar, was declared dead. His wife sustained multiple fractures and head injuries.

The deceased Navjot Singh's advocate, Ishan Dewan, told ANI, "The police requested judicial custody, not police custody. The court has granted judicial custody for two days. The accused's lawyer has filed a bail application today. What is important right now is ensuring that such an unfortunate incident does not happen again. We will present all facts in court."

(With inputs from ANI) 

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