Cyrus Mistry Accident | How Can All This Be Considered In A PIL? Bombay High Court To Litigant Seeking Culpable Homicide Charge Against Dr Pandole

A PIL has been filed in the Bombay High Court seeking a direction to charge Dr Anahita Pandole (55) with culpable homicide under Section 304 (II) of the IPC for allegedly causing the death of Cyrus Mistry (54) and his friend Jehangir Pandole (49) in a vehicular accident in September 2022. The plea further seeks a direction for adding her husband Darius Pandole as an accused in the case. It is the petitioner’s case that since Pandole had "consumed alcohol" the night before the accident, she shouldn’t just be charged under section 304A of the IPC for causing death due to rash and negligent driving punishable with upto two-years imprisonment. Moreover, her husband was aware of this and therefore he should be charged with abetment, the petitioner has said. The petitioner has stated before the court that he filed the petition also to highlight the cases of bad and dangerous driving. On Tuesday, the petitioner sought to amend the petition as he told the court that he recently learned about filing of charge sheet in the case However, the bench headed by Justice SV Gangapurwala directed him to first file an application stating the amendment he was seeking and adjourned the PIL to January 17. The court also repeatedly questioned the petitioner and asked him how he was concerned with the matter. “How can all this be considered in a PIL, which section has to be incorporated? If the magistrate feels that additional sections are required it will be added…. Everything under the sun doesn't have to be in a PIL,” said the court Senior Advocate Rafiq Dada for Darius and instructed by Economic Law Practice submitted that despite citing over 140 thousand deaths in vehicular accidents, only this case was chosen. “This campaign must now end. He has said 140000 deaths in vehicular accidents. Why pick only this case," he submitted before the court. Senior Advocate Aabad Ponda for Dr Anahita also questioned the maintainability of the PIL. “This whole case (PIL) is premised on the ground that alcohol was found and no test was taken. The test was taken," he said.Chief PP Aruna Pai for the Kasa police said alcohol wasn’t found in Dr Anahita's system. Her medical reports were clear, Pai said. Even as the senior counsel sought for the PIL to be dismissed outright, the court granted the petitioner time till January 17, 2023 to file an application specifying the amendment. An FIR was registered on November 5 at the Kasa police station in Palghar district two months after the accident of September 4, 2022. At 3.15 pm on September 4 while travelling from Ahmedabad to Mumbai, Cyrus Mistry and Jahangir, who were seated in the rear seats, died in the accident, while Darius and his wife Dr Anahita seated in the front seats suffered severe injuries.Dr Anahita, who had suffered serious injuries in the accident, was discharged on December 22 after spending 108 days in hospital. The petition has the following prayers: 1. File a supplementary chargesheet and add charges of 304(II) read with section 109 of the IPC against Pandole and her husband 2. Directing State to implement the Recommendations given in the Two Hundred Forty Third Report of the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2016.

Cyrus Mistry Accident | How Can All This Be Considered In A PIL? Bombay High Court To Litigant Seeking Culpable Homicide Charge Against Dr Pandole

Sharmeen Hakim

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