The prosecution in the Pune Porsche crash case has claimed that blood samples were not only swapped for the 17-year-old accused but also for his two friends who were with him. This was done at the government-run Sassoon hospital to show that they were not under the influence of alcohol, news agency PTI reported.
The sessions court, which is hearing the bail applications of six accused in the Kalyani Nagar (Pune) hit-and-run case, is investigating the alleged involvement of the accused’s parents Vishal and Shivani Agarwal, middlemen Ashpak Makandar and Amar Gaikwad, as well as Sassoon hospital’s Dr Ajay Taware and Dr Shreehari Halnor.
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The accused, who is a minor, was released from an observation home following a high court order. However, his parents and doctors at the Sassoon hospital remain under the scanner due to accusations of his blood samples being replaced to establish he was not drunk during the hit-and-run.
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The incident in question took place on May 19, when the drunk minor allegedly killed two 24-year-old IT professionals on a motorbike after hitting them with his Porsche car in Kalyani Nagar, Pune.
In his arguments against the bail plea, special prosecutor Shishir Hiray claimed that Dr Halnor, in spite of his knowledge of forensic medicine and the legal consequences of his actions, replaced the blood samples of the 17-year-old driving the car, and his two friends, after the accident.
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The prosecutor told additional sessions judge that this was orchestrated by the parents of the minor and Dr Taware – who received Rs. 2.5 lakh for it.
The statement of a trainee (resident) doctor who was asked to collect blood samples of Shivani Agarwal, was presented in court. As per the police, the minor’s blood samples were replaced with those of his mother.
In the case of his two friends, the plan was to use the blood samples of their their mothers as a substitute as well, according to another resident doctor. However, the prosecutor shared that this could not be done because one mother-son duo did not share the same blood group, while the other’s mother had also consumed 30 ml of alcohol.
Therefore, the samples of two other men were switched with the blood of the boys. The trainee doctors were instructed to use dry cotton instead of cotton dipped in alcohol (spirit) to avoid possible alcohol contamination, the prosecutor added
The prosecutor also cited the statement of another resident doctor, to whom Dr Halnor allegedly handed over the ₹2.5 lakh in cash he had received. Dr Halnor also did not allow any junior doctor to prepare the notes and did it himself, he said.
“Dr Halnor came to his hostel at B J Medical College on May 23 and told him he had received some money through Dr Taware, and since he had no cupboard in his hostel room, requested him to keep it in his cupboard. When the friend asked him what did he receive the money for, Dr Halnor said he will explain it later and he had done nothing wrong,” advocate Hiray said.
An eye witness at the scene of the crime said that a mob had gathered after the crash and pulled the minor driver out of his car. The minor could not stand properly, indicating his intoxication, the prosecutor said.
Just a few hours later, in a preliminary medical report, Dr Halnor gave a negative finding on alcohol consumption, he pointed out.
Prosecutor Hiray, assisted by advocate Sarthi Pansare, will continue his arguments on Monday.
