The Delhi Police on Thursday, 10 February, arrested a 27-year-old man involved in a hit-and-run case in South Delhi's Greater Kailash-1 with the help of CCTV footage. The video showed an SUV hitting a walker and driving over him, and the latter hanging onto the bonnet before falling and getting severely injured.
The accused, Raj Sunderam, was apprehended outside Le Meridian Hotel in Gurugram two days after the hit-and-run incident. Sunderam's father, a retired central service officer, was also held for allegedly harbouring his son. However, the father was later released, the police said in an official statement.
The video showed Sunderam driving his newly bought Volkswagen at an extremely high speed. After he hit the man, identified as 37-year-old Anand Vijay Mandelia, he continued to drive the car for about 200 metres before fleeing the scene.
FIR Filed Based on Spot-Inspection
"The accused was arrested outside Le Meridian Hotel, Gurugram, and is facing charges under IPC Sections 307 (attempt to murder), 308 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), and 212 (harbouring) among others."DCP (South district) Benita Mary Jaiker
Mandelia is a resident of GK-1 and was out on a walk when the incident occurred. The accused, who hit him, is a law student at a major private university.
Another footage from a separate CCTV camera shows that the man was flung onto the road as the car sped away. Mandelia appeared to be in excruciating pain in the video and was apparently unable to move. He was then aided and rushed to the hospital by passers-by.
Before the victim had recorded his statement with the police, an FIR was registered beforehand on the basis of a spot inspection and with respect to the medico-legal case.
DCP Benita Mary Jaiker stated, "Initially, a case under sections of rash driving and causing grievous hurt was registered. New sections have been added on the basis of facts that emerged during investigation."
What Did the Victim's Family Say?
The victim's family informed that he had sustained multiple head injuries and was on ventilator support at Saket's Max Hospital. However, he is reportedly out of danger.
His family also alleged that the accused had hit him with the "intent to kill."
"Anand was out for a walk when he saw two boys in a car speeding. He warned them and said 'dheere chalao'. This riled them up and they went on to hit him. He fell on the bonnet, but they didn't stop. They dragged him for around 200 metres."A member of the victim's family, who did not wished to be named.
The police have said that further investigation is underway.
(With inputs from The Indian Express, NDTV, and ANI.)
(This copy had wrongly stated that the accused's father was a former IAS officer and that he was arrested. However, it has since been updated to reflect that the father, who is a retired central service officer, was held and subsequently released. The error is regretted.)
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