The bail received by the 17-year-old driver in the fatal Porsche accident in Pune, Maharashtra, was short-lived. Following a public outcry, the Juvenile Justice Board cancelled the bail of Vedant Agarwal on Wednesday. He was also remanded to an observation home till June 5. The cancellation comes three days after he was given a bail on Sunday, just hours after he allegedly claimed two lives. As per reports, the bail cancellation came after law enforcement officers re-approached the Board, urging it to review its previous order, and seeking permission to treat the minor accused as an adult.
An FIR has been registered against Agarwal, son of a real estate developer, under sections 304, 304 A, 279, 337, 338 of the IPC, and relevant sections of the Motor Vehicles Act.
The accident, which took place in the wee hours on Sunday in Pune’s Kalyani Nagar, resulted in the death of Aneesh Awadhiya and Ashwini Koshta. Both were aged 24, hailed from Madhya Pradesh, and worked as software engineers. The accident happened at 3:15 am when Awadiya and Koshta were returning home with friends on motorcycles after partying at a club, according to the police. The two riders were flung into the air under the impact of the crash, causing them to land on another car. They died instantly. After hitting them, the car crashed into the pavement and came to a halt.
Agarwal, who was allegedly driving the Porsche under influence, was given a bail within hours of the accident. His bail conditions, which went viral on the Internet, left a section of social media users furious due to its school-homework nature. One of the six conditions stated that the 17-year-old had to write a 300-word essay on the effect of road accident. The five other conditions were: 1. Visiting RTO. Study rules and regulations. Present it before Juvenile Justice Board, 2. Assist RTO officer. Study traffic rules for 15 days. 3. Visit a de-addiction counselling centre. 4. Consult a psychologist and a psychiatric doctor. 5.Keep away from bad company in the future.
Meanwhile, just hours before the accident, Agarwal spent INR 48,000 (USD 576) on food and drinks on the night of the accident, reports stated, quoting Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar. According to the FIR, Agarwal was at Cosie restaurant with his friends from 9:30 pm to midnight, where he consumed alcohol. He then continued drinking at Hotel Blak from midnight to 1am. CCTV footage of him drinking with his friends at one of these places has come to light. Seated at an oval table, the footage shows scenes of revelry, with the table crowded with alcohol bottles. He was reportedly celebrating his Class 12 results with friends.
2 IT individuals killed by a 17-year-old drunken boy named Vedant Agarwal with a Porsche car 💔 He got bail as his father is a famous builder in Pune #VedantAgarwal #Pune #Porsche #Kalyaninagar #Accident pic.twitter.com/npmqUJYd5M
— 𝕯𝖊𝖊𝖕𝖆𝖐🦅 (@Deepak32763716) May 21, 2024
Pune police have arrested Agarwal’s father. Vishal Agrawal was arrested from Aurangabad city of Maharashtra after a case was registered against him on Monday. He was reportedly on the run. The father had knowledge that his son lacked training and did not even have a learner’s licence, but still allowed him to drive the car, which was still pending registration.
Not just the father and son, even the grandfather has had an encounter with the law. As per reports, Vedant’s grandfather, Surendra Kumar Agarwal, is facing a trial with gangster Chhota Rajan before the special court in Mumbai, in connection with the firing on Shiv Sena leader Ajay Bhosle in 2009. As per the case registered with Band Garden station, Pune, men on two motorcycle opened fire at Bhosale’s car while he was out campaigning on October 11, 2009. Bhosle escaped unhurt but the bullet hit his driver, Shakeel Sayyed. Hence a case of attempt to murder was registered.
The assailants later were identified and were linked to Rajan’s aide Farid Tanasha. The investigation later revealed the role of Surendra Kumar Agarwal. Surendra allegedly had a dispute with his brother, RK Agarwal, over a piece of land and to sort out the dispute, he took help of henchman of Chhota Rajan. It was claimed that Surendra also held several meetings with alleged Rajan-aide Vijay Tambat. Thus, the accused allegedly hatched a conspiracy to attack Bhosle, who was a close friend of Surendra’s brother.
