Pune Car Crash: Teen Driver's Father and Others Arrested Amid Public Outrage

On Tuesday, police arrested the father of a 17-year-old boy who allegedly crashed his speeding Porsche into a motorcycle, killing two software engineers in Pune. The boy, who police claim was drunk at the time of the accident, was granted bail by the Juvenile Justice Board hours after the crash. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed shock over the lenient view taken by the board and pushed for trying the teenager as an adult. The father, a real estate developer, was arrested and will be produced before a court on Wednesday.The police registered a case against the teenager's father under sections 75 and 77 of the Juvenile Justice Act and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Section 75 deals with willful neglect of a child, while section 77 deals with supplying a child with intoxicating liquor or drugs. A case has been registered against the boy under section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the IPC and provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act.According to the FIR lodged in connection with the incident, the man gave his son the car despite knowing he did not have a valid driving license. He also allowed his son to party despite knowing he consumes liquor. The deceased were identified as Anish Awadhiya and Ashwini Koshta, both 24-year-old IT professionals hailing from Madhya Pradesh and working in Pune.Meanwhile, a Pune court on Tuesday remanded three accused - an owner and two managers of different restaurants where the boy consumed liquor before getting behind the wheel - to police custody till May 24 in the case. The accused served liquor to the boy and his friends without confirming his age; legal drinking age is 21.Police commissioner Amitesh Kumar said another accused, Jayesh Bonkar, is a staffer at Blak Club hotel and was also arrested. Deputy CM Fadnavis made a surprise visit to the Pune police commissionerate to review the case and later addressed the media. He said after the crash, police immediately invoked IPC section 304 along with relevant provisions and in its remand plea before the JJB, mentioned that since the teenager was 17 years and eight months old, he should be treated as an adult.Fadnavis said that after the 2012 Nirbhaya case of Delhi, there was an amendment in law stipulating that in heinous crimes, juveniles accused who are above 16 should be tried as adults. Taking this point, Pune police sought permission to treat the juvenile in this case as an adult. However, the board took a different stand.The JJB granted bail to the boy on grounds he will do community work for 15 days and write an essay of 300 words on road safety. Fadnavis called this order "shocking and surprising" and said it aggravated public outrage. The police moved an application in a higher court challenging the JJB order but were asked to approach the board again for revision of its order.Fadnavis said police have approached JJB for revision of its order and a decision is expected by Wednesday. He added that police will do whatever it takes to ensure justice in this case. Concerns have been raised regarding pubs and restaurants where age checking is lax. Fadnavis said police have been asked to enforce rules meant for liquor-serving establishments and instructions have been given to curb drunken driving.