Treat Mumbai BMW hit and run case as murder: Aaditya tells govt

Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Tuesday demanded the BMW car crash involving Mihir Shah, son of a leader from the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, be treated as murder.

Talking to reporters, Thackeray questioned the delay in arresting Mihir, son of Sena politician Rajesh Shah.

Mihir was arrested on Tuesday by Mumbai Police from Virar, two days after he allegedly rammed his luxury car into a two-wheeler, killing a woman and injuring her husband in Worli.

"This case should not be treated as a hit-and-run incident. This is a case of murder, and we demand that it should be treated like that," Thackeray said.

Mihir and other accused persons, including Rajesh Shah's driver Rajrishi Bidawat, have been booked under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) including section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), according to the police.

Police had stated Rajesh Shah actively ensured Mihir's escape after the car crash. Rajesh Shah is currently out on bail.

Chilling details of the accident emerged in CCTV footage produced by police in the court on Monday.

The footage shows Kaveri Nakhwa, who was riding pillion on the two-wheeler, being dragged by the BMW car for 1.5 kilometres before the car stopped. Mihir and Bidawat pulled the woman off the bonnet, placed her on the road, and swapped seats. While reversing the car, Bidawat ran over the victim before fleeing.

Thackeray, who represents the Worli assembly constituency, alleged negligence by the police in arresting Mihir.

"Where was Mihir Shah hiding for 60 hours? The chief minister must answer," he said.

Police are questioning Mihir's mother and two sisters along with 10 others, a police official said.

Under fire from the opposition over the rise in hit-and-run accidents in the state, Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena head Eknath Shinde had asserted no one would be spared such cases.