A day after five people were killed in the accident on the Bandra Worli Sea Link, the 42-year-old real estate developer, Irfan Abdul Raheem Beelkia, was arrested on Thursday under the Indian Penal Code section 304 (death by negligence). The police specifically clarified that the suspect didn't flee from the hospital where he was taken for treatment instead he was allowed to go home and detained later.
A resident of Mohammad Ali road, Beelkia was apprehended from his home after the deadly crash which took place in the wee hours of Wednesday and left eight people injured. Among the deceased, four were toll plaza workers and one an ambulance driver.
“After the accident, the suspect was taken along with a few other injured to the Saifee hospital, Charni road, where he received treatment for an injury on his left arm. Subsequently, he went home under our supervision. Later, we detained him from his home and brought him to the Worli police station. He was arrested on Thursday and booked for death caused by negligence,” said Worli police station senior inspector Anil Kohli. Before the accident occurred, Beelkia was heading to south Mumbai from Jogeshwari after meeting a relative. His car has been sent for forensic tests to confirm any mechanical faults in the vehicle, while his alcohol test was also underway, he added.
Speculating about the reason behind the mishap, the police said that moments before the accident, Beelkia was driving on the sea link's second lane and he suddenly veered to the last lane where he rammed into the other cars. The police suspect the accused might have received a phone call or tried to put his mobile phone on charge or was drunk. When asked about these possibilities, the senior police inspector said that all these aspects will be looked into thoroughly during the investigation.
The CCTV footage of the accident, which is doing rounds on social media, shows the SUV dashing the ambulance and three cars parked at the sea link. The mishap also led to the disruption of traffic which was briefly halted. Those injured are undergoing treatment at different civic and private hospitals of the city.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief minister Eknath Shinde had conveyed their condolences to the bereaved members of victim’s families via tweets.
