The Pune Police on Wednesday arrested a 40-year-old man in connection with a hit-and-run incident involving Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla’s mother.
Sangeeta Shinde Alphonso, Assistant Commissioner of Police, speaking to The Free Press Journal, said the incident took place at a petrol pump near Pune’s RTO around 5:30 pm on Tuesday. “The investigation revealed that the accident was caused by the driver of a Tata Punch car bearing registration number MH-12-YH-3461. The accused has been identified as Hemant Ravindra Chandgude (40), a resident of Om Ganesh Park, Manjari, Pune. The driver has been arrested by the police,” she added.
According to the police, Kevin Praful Wazir, a resident of Thane and the manager of Yasmin Sarfaraz Poonawalla (75), a resident of Dhole Patil Road, Pune, had stopped his car at the petrol pump. Poonawalla was with him at the time. She got out of the car and was standing nearby when the four-wheeler hit her and fled the scene.
Due to the impact, Poonawalla suffered a fracture. She was initially given primary treatment at Jehangir Hospital and was later shifted to Ruby Hall Hospital for further treatment, where she is currently undergoing medical care, the police added.
Accordingly, a case has been registered at the Bundgarden Police Station under Sections 281 and 125(b) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 134(a) of the Motor Vehicles Act.
Earlier in the day, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said he had ordered police officials to investigate the hit-and-run incident. “This (the hit-and-run) is very unfortunate. CM Devendra Fadnavis has given necessary instructions to the senior police officials of the state and Pune. The CM also spoke to @Shehzad_Ind in detail and wished his mother a speedy recovery,” the CM’s office wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
