New Delhi: Deepanshu Verma and his cousin Mukul were headed towards India Gate on a two-wheeler when a black Mahindra XUV struck them on the intervening night of 29 and 30 April. Visuals of the incident, recorded by an eyewitness and accessed by ThePrint, show Verma (30) on the roof of the car, being hauled in Delhi’s high-security zone.
Verma, who was allegedly hauled for about three kilometres and dumped near Delhi Gate, succumbed to injuries, while his cousin Mukul (20) is undergoing treatment. Verma managed a jewellery outlet and is survived by his parents and a younger sister.
The accused in this hit-and-run case, Harneet Singh Chawla — a property dealer — was arrested later that same night by the Delhi police. An FIR was lodged against him at the Barakhamba police station under section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Police sources say the accused was with his family at the time of the incident, adding that his SUV has been seized and further investigation is underway. Sources also say that Verma was declared dead on arrival at a hospital in central Delhi.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Pranav Tayal tells ThePrint that the incident took place near Kasturba Gandhi Marg. “Accused was arrested the same day. Toxicology reports are awaited to confirm if he was intoxicated at the time of the incident,” he adds.
According to the FIR against Chawla, lodged on a complaint by an eyewitness identified as one Mohammed Bilal, Deepanshu Verma and his brother Mukul “were coming from Connaught Place towards India Gate”.
“An over speeding black XUV 500 came and hit the two men on the bike. One of them fell on the road while the other fell on the roof of the car. In spite of the loud noise, the driver of the vehicle, instead of stopping, sped off towards the Ranjit Singh flyover,” read the FIR.
The FIR goes further to add that the eyewitness lost track of the speeding vehicle and returned to the accident spot from where he took Mukul to the RML hospital where he is now undergoing treatment.
“I came to know that the car driver had dumped the other victim near Delhi Gate….the driver was aware that the injured person was at the top of his car but instead of taking him to the hospital, he kept driving and endangered his life,” added the FIR against Chawla.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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