HYDERABAD: A day after the death of 26-year-old Bharati Mukhi came to light, police on Friday said they had collected CCTV footage of the August 16 road accident in which she was mowed down by an Aston Martin driven by Sanjush, son of Jana Sena MP Lingamaneni Ramesh.
The accident occurred near Inorbit Mall in Madhapur. Kukatpally DCP Ritiraj told TNIE that the CCTV footage showed the speeding car hitting Bharati. The exact speed of the vehicle will be established during the investigation, Ritiraj said. This came after rumours circulated on social media that there was no CCTV footage of the incident.
Bharati worked as a sales executive at Lifestyle Store in Inorbit Mall. She was a native of Damudigod in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district.
An employee of the mall told TNIE that Bharati earned around Rs 20,000 a month and was due for a promotion.
According to police, Bharati and her colleague Pooja Ashok had gone near ITC Kohenur to bring lunch on August 16. While crossing the road in front of the mall, a speeding car bearing registration number TG-09-G-0666 allegedly hit Bharati.
Madhapur SHO KV Subbarao said passersby confronted Sanjush after the accident. He then took Bharati to a private hospital in Jubilee Hills, where doctors declared her dead. Sanjush later went to his residence in Hitech City. Police subsequently brought him to the station and conducted alcohol and drug tests, both of which returned negative. His blood samples were also collected and sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory for examination.
The vehicle involved in the accident was seized and sent for inspection by the Motor Vehicle Inspector (MVI). The MVI report is awaited. Police are also awaiting the postmortem report as part of the investigation.
Based on a complaint lodged by Lifestyle Store manager Panjala Ashwin Kumar, Madhapur police registered a case under Section 106(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which deals with causing death by negligence. Police recorded the manager’s statement on August 16, Subbarao said. Section 106(1) of the BNS provides for imprisonment of up to five years and a fine for causing death by negligence.
Addressing questions over the decision not to arrest Sanjush, DCP Ritiraj said that since the alleged offence is punishable with imprisonment of less than seven years, the investigating officer was required to consider the necessity of arrest in accordance with Section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and the principles laid down by the Supreme Court in Arnesh Kumar vs State of Bihar.
Sanjush was issued a notice under Section 35 of the BNSS directing him to appear on August 19 with proof of identity and residence. He appeared before the police on the specified date and submitted the documents.
“It is incorrect and unwarranted to allege that the police refrained from arresting the accused under any extraneous influence,” she said, adding that the decision was based on the legal requirements governing arrest and the circumstances and evidence available at the time.
Meanwhile, Sanjush’s father and Jana Sena Party MP Lingamaneni Ramesh said: “We will extend every possible help to the bereaved family. I request you all not to speculate or prejudge the circumstances. My son shifted the woman to the hospital without any delay. He subsequently reported the accident to police and provided all the necessary details.”
“My son is fully cooperating with the authorities. Nothing is being concealed in this matter, nor have we attempted to avoid the legal process in any way,” Ramesh added.