A Mumbai court on Wednesday sent Mihir Shah, accused in the BMW hit-and-run case and son of a Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) politician, to police custody for seven days till July 16. Shah was arrested by Mumbai Police yesterday evening after a nearly 72 hour statewide manhunt.
During the hearing, the Mumbai Police told chief metropolitan magistrate (Sewri court) S P Bhosale that it was a "cruel, heartless crime". They said the accused should be given maximum custody as they need to probe who helped him to escape and also since the car's number plate is yet to be recovered.
The police also said that they need to find whether the accused had a driving license and what happened to the number plate of the car, which was allegedly discarded by Mihir after the accident.
Meanwhile, Mihir's counsel told the court that both Mihir and the driver had been questioned by the police. Their phones have also been confiscated.
The lawyer claimed that police did not have any grounds for seeking Mihir's custody, which the court denied.
Mihir, 24, who had managed to evade the police since the accident on Sunday morning, was finally arrested from Virar near Mumbai on July 9.
The luxury car driven by Mihir Shah allegedly rammed into a two-wheeler from behind in the Worli area of south-central Mumbai on Sunday morning, resulting in the death of Kaveri Nakhwa (45), who was riding pillion, while her husband Pradeep survived with injuries.
Soon after the incident, Mihir fled from the Kala Nagar area, leaving his car and driver behind in an auto rickshaw, and reached his girlfriend's residence in suburban Goregaon, police said.
Police have also claimed that after partying with friends at a bar in the Juhu area, Mihir Shah left with his driver for South Mumbai in the early hours.
He was spotted in Marine Drive area around 4.30 am, driving the BMW car. Driver Rajrushi Bidawat was sitting next to him.
As the vehicle reached Worli, the car hit the two-wheeler, killing Kaveri Nakhwa.
Meanwhile, Mihir's father, Rajesh Shah, who was a Shinde Sena leader from from the adjoining Palghar district, was sacked by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde earlier in the day.
A one-line notice by Shiv Sena secretary Sanjay More said Rajesh Shah has been relieved from the post of the party’s deputy leader.
The Chief Minister assured strict action against the guilty in the BMW case and announced Rs 10 lakh aid for the victim’s family. He said there was no question of supporting anyone and no one would be spared.
"Whoever is guilty will not be spared; strict action will be taken against them," Shinde said while speaking to reporters in Mumbai.
"We stand by the family of the victim. We will provide legal and financial support to the aggrieved family. We will give them Rs 10 lakh from the CM's Relief Fund. They are from our family," he said
