The 17-year-old boy who is currently in juvenile centre in the case involving the Pune accident has alleged that their family driver was behind the wheels when their Porsche car crashed into two bikers at Kalyani Nagar in the city in the early hours of Sunday.
According to an India Today report, the teen's father Vishal Agarwal has also claimed that it was their driver who was driving the car during the accident and the friends of the teen who were with him in the car was also backed the claim.
A crime branch officer told PTI that the driver may be presented in the court as a witness in the case.
A Porsche car, allegedly driven by the minor accused, who the police claim was drunk at the time, fatally knocked down two motorbike-borne software engineers
The teenager was sent to the observation home by the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) on Wednesday.
What Did Driver Reveal To Pune Police?
When questioned by the Pune Police, the driver revealed that he was driving the car out of the parking lot of the Blak Club in Koregaon Park locality. But the teen who was allegedly drunk at the time insisted to drive the luxury car.
According to a Hindustan Times report, a police officer stated the driver's claims, saying, “He was reluctant to let the minor drive given that the boy was inebriated. He then called the 17-year-old’s father, who said ‘let him drive’."
The officer also added, “The driver sat beside the minor while he drove the Porsche and later crashed into the two-wheeler killing two IT professionals."
Pune Police Questions Teen's Grandfather, Friend
The Pune police on Thursday questioned the grandfather of the 17-year-old boy in connection with the accident.
A crime branch official told the media, "The grandfather, one of the friends of the teenager who was with him in the car when the accident took place, and the driver were questioned today in connection with the car accident," a crime branch official said.
The police have already arrested the teenager's father, who is a prominent city-based builder.
The official further said that the boy's grandfather and his son, who is already in police custody, were confronted as some facts related to the case needed to be corroborated, the official said.
"Since the luxury car is in the name of the realty firm owned by the Agarwals, the grandfather of the minor, who is one of the owners of the firm, was questioned in regards to the ownership of the car," he said.
A friend of the minor who was with him in the car was also questioned to verify and corroborate the sequence of events that took place in the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday, he added.
The police, while seeking the custody of the minor's father, had told the court on Wednesday that as the juvenile wanted to drive the car, the driver called his employer (minor's father) and told him about his son's demand and it was his dad who told the driver to let his son drive the car.
Forensic Team Investigates CCTV footage, GPS of car
Meanwhile, the cops are collecting CCTV footage of the entire route through which the car traversed - from residence to Cosie restaurant, then to Blak Club and from there to the accident spot, to see who was driving the car.
A forensic team also carried out an examination of the Porsche car which was involved in the accident.
"A team today conducted the examination of the car, which is in the possession of the Yerawada police station. We have already carried out the forensic examination of the spot and now the car has also been examined. The technical aspects such as GPS, the cameras around the car were examined," said another senior police officer, who is currently monitoring the investigation.
The police said that they have seized one phone belonging to the minor's father who is currently in police custody.
Meanwhile, BJP leader and Rajya Sabha member Medha Kulkarni posted on X saying that the accident showed the Juvenile Justice Act needs to be reviewed as so-called minors like this boy are using the law to get away with serious crimes.
Similar Accident Investigation In Kanpur
Following the tragic incident in Pune, authorities are now looking into the actions of local police where allegedly officers let off a 15-year-old boy involved in a similar case last October, where two people died.
Not just that, the same teenager was allegedly in another accident in March, injuring four people.
He was caught on May 21and a departmental inquiry was ordered on Thursday, just two days after the Pune incident.
In March, four persons were injured in the Nawabganj locality in Kanpur when the boy was allegedly recklessly driving his car.
The minor was finally arrested on May 21 and sent to a juvenile home.
