Bombay HC to hear Pereira's bail plea
Mumbai,
Sept
7:
The
Bombay
High
Court
will
hear
bail
plea
of
Alister
Pereira
in
connection
with
the
November
12,
2006
Bandra
hit-and-run
case.
Pereira, who surrendered to police on Thursday, was sentenced to three years rigorous imprisonment in the case.
Delivering the verdict, a High Court judge said: “Alister does not deserve any sympathy."
A division Bench comprising Chief Justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice Ranjana Desai said the prosecution had successfully established that Pereira was drunk when the accident happened.
The Bench also imposed a fine of Rs.5 lakh on him.
The Judges found Pereira guilty under Section 304 (II) (act with the knowledge that it is likely to cause death, but without any intention to cause death, or to cause such bodily injury as is likely to cause death), 338 (causing grievous hurt by an act endangering the life or personal safety of others) and 337 (causing hurt by an act endangering the life or personal safety of others) of the IPC.
Pereira had moved the high court, seeking his acquittal while challenging his conviction by a fast track court last month on the grounds that he was convicted under Section 304-A of the IPC which did not figure in the chargesheet.
Pereira, a 21-year-old businessman, got away with a six month prison term for running his car over labourers sleeping on a Bandra pavement. He killed seven of them last November.
Pereira was found guilty of causing death due to negligence not amounting to culpable homicide (Section 304-A) and causing injuries (Section 337 of IPC) by the Sewri Sessions Court.
The lower court judgement had sparked a public outcry, which led to the High Court taking suo motu notice of the incident. It had issued a notice to the Maharashtra Government, asking why the prosecution of the case was so "pathetic".
The
Maharashtra
Government
had
moved
the
court
against
the
lower
court's
judgement
in
giving
lighter
punishment
to
Pereira.
Additional
Sessions
Judge
Ajit
Mishra,
who
handed
a
six-month
imprisonment
to
Pereira,
has
since
resigned.
ANI>