On May 19, 2024, a speeding Porsche allegedly driven by a 17-year-old under the influence of alcohol mowed down two IT professionals, Ashwini Koshta and Anish Awadhiya, in Pune’s Kalyani Nagar, triggering nationwide outrage. Today, two years after the tragic incident, their parents continue to await justice as legal proceedings in the case continue.
'Those monsters are yet to be punished'
Speaking to news agency PTI, Ashwini's mother, Mamata Koshta, rued that the accused were "roaming freely" and that they were "yet to be punished". "It's been two years, but nothing has happened... we are awaiting justice, and those who killed my daughter are out on bail. It is extremely painful... my daughter is no more. Those monsters are yet to be punished. They are roaming freely. It feels like the law is only strict for ordinary people, while influential people can escape punishment easily. But normal people like us don’t get heard at all. We are forced to keep faith somehow, because there is no other hope left that we will ever get justice. At the very least, the hearing should have started by now. We had even applied for a fast-track hearing, but nothing has happened regarding that either."
'What wrong did we do?'
Ashwini's father, Suresh Koshta, said, "Today, two full years have passed. But we still have not received justice. Instead, those people who were in jail have now been granted freedom. The judiciary granted them bail, saying that since the trial had not begun yet and the charges had still not been framed, they could not be kept in jail for so long. So, they were released on bail. Now they will roam around freely and comfortably while the case continues. But we are the ones suffering endlessly, as if we are being punished for some crime. What wrong did we do?"
"Prime Minister Modi talks about ‘Save the Daughter, Educate the Daughter.’ He talks about empowering girls and bringing 33% reservation for women. But when daughters step out of their homes, families like ours work day and night, shedding blood and sweat to earn money, educate them, and send them outside with dreams for their future. And then the spoiled children of wealthy people crush them under their cars. Even after saying so much, after pleading so many times, after approaching everyone possible, the court proceedings have not even properly begun till today. The charges have still not been framed even after all this time," he added.
'A law should be made...'
Anish's mother, Savita Awadhiya, said that the system is "flawed" as "one by one, everyone is getting bail." "It has been almost two years, and my son still has not received justice. All the people who were inside jail are gradually being granted bail. It feels as if Agarwal had influenced people with money earlier, and perhaps even now, he may have influenced the new judge because Shivani Agarwal got bail, and all the doctors and others involved also gradually received bail. We demanded that since the accident was caused by a minor, a law be made so that people learn not to give vehicles to underage children or allow them such freedom. When a child is drinking heavily in pubs and driving an expensive car, the parents are also responsible because they allowed it. Then, after such an incident, they say the child is a minor. A law should be madeso people understand they should not allow their children to behave this way," she added.
