LUCKNOW: In a major turn of events, Kanpur police arrested 26-year-old Shivam Mishra, son of a leading tobacco baron KK Mishra, on Thursday, in connection with the high-profile Lamborghini crash case which left half a dozen persons injured on VIP road under Gwaltoli police station area in Kanpur on Sunday afternoon.
According to Kanpur DCP Atul Srivastava, Shivam Mishra was arrested and presented in the court and secured bail.
“We had received information that he has come to Kanpur, and our teams acted promptly and caught him,” said the senior police officer.
Tobacco trader KK Mishra made several attempts to save his son. He first tried to manage the police, but when this move was exposed, he got the alleged driver to surrender in court.
The police arrested Shivam from outside his house in Aryanagar and later produced him before the AJCM court which granted him bail after hearing both the defence and the prosecution.
The court granted bail to Mishra on a personal bond of Rs 20,000. The car will remain at the police station.
The next hearing of this case will be on February 13.
Notably, the arrest of Shivam Mishra, the prime accused, named in the FIR regarding the car crash case, came a day after the Kanpur local court rejected the surrender application of Mohan, the ‘driver’ of Shivam Mishra.
The alleged driver had admitted in the court that at the time of the accident he was behind the wheel instead of Shivam and had presented himself to surrender.
However, the court turned him away saying that his name did not figure in police FIR.
In fact, the accident took place near Ring Wala Chauraha on Sunday when a Lamborghini Revuelto, reportedly linked to tobacco exporter KK Mishra’s firm, allegedly lost control owing to high speed and rammed into the vehicles parked finally mounting the pavement and injuring the pedestrians before hitting an autorickshaw and a stationary motorbike.
Autorickshaw driver Tauseef Ahmed and two motorcycle riders, identified as Vishal and Sonu Tripathi, sustained injuries in the crash.
Based on Tauseef Ahmed's complaint, an FIR was initially registered against an “unidentified driver” under sections related to negligent driving, endangering life, and causing hurt by dangerous means under the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita.
Police, later, claimed that their investigation identified Shivam Mishra as the person behind the wheel and added his name in the FIR. Kanpur Police Commissioner Raghubir Lal said the luxury vehicle was seized adding that Mishra was driving at the time of the crash and was pulled out of the car by private security personnel accompanying him from the driver’s seat.
The fact was corroborated by the CCTV footage of the area and also the eyewitness accounts. The Police authorities also claimed that Mishra, purportedly having an underlying medical condition, was being examined as part of the probe.
The witnesses had described the impact of the accident saying that the car hit the motorcycle with such force that the rider was thrown several feet into the air. The car allegedly mounted the motorcycle’s front wheel and dragged it for some distance before stopping.
The witnesses also said that immediately after the crash, bouncers travelling in a car following the Lamborghini rushed to the spot and broke open the window pulling Mishra out in an unconscious state. Locals also claimed that the bouncers attempted to remove Mishra from the scene, leading to a scuffle before he was taken to hospital.
Amid speculation that Mishra may have been under the influence of alcohol, police said this would be determined through medical examination and forensic reports. An official said tests were also being conducted to check whether epilepsy or another medical condition of Mishra could have contributed to the crash.
Mishra’s family, on the contrary, claimed that he suffered a seizure while driving and said he had experienced similar episodes over the past six months. His lawyer, however, had disputed that he was driving, asserting that a chauffeur was at the wheel and that Mishra was unwell.
A court application was moved, and further proceedings are expected to follow. In the meantime, the district police authorities also removed Gwaltoli SHO Santosh Gaur from his post citing negligence and failure to follow due procedure after the accident.
As per Kanpur police commissioner Raghubir Lal, the role of transport authorities would also be examined if medical findings suggest that Mishra was unfit to drive.