Pune Porsche Crash Case: Top Court Grants Bail to Accused of Evidence Manipulation

The Supreme Court has granted bail to three people linked to the 2024 Pune Porsche accident case, which led to two deaths, while sharply criticising the role of parents in such incidents involving juveniles. A bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan said parents are failing to exercise control, and flagged the danger of giving young people easy access to money and powerful cars.

The observations came as the bench heard bail pleas connected to alleged manipulation of blood samples, a key strand of investigation in the Pune Porsche accident case. The court said that parents cannot escape responsibility when minors are allowed to party, drive high-end vehicles, and allegedly consume alcohol, and stressed that the problem begins at home, not on the road.

Pune Porsche accident case background and crash details

The fatal crash in the Pune Porsche accident case took place on May 19, 2024, in Pune’s Kalyani Nagar area. Police said a Porsche, allegedly driven by a 17-year-old under the influence of alcohol, hit two IT professionals who were on a two-wheeler. Both victims died, and the incident quickly turned into a national debate on juvenile crime, privilege and accountability.

The Juvenile Justice Board’s handling of the Pune Porsche accident case drew intense criticism across the country. The minor accused was first granted bail on relatively soft terms. One key condition required the juvenile to write a 300-word essay on road safety, which many felt did not match the seriousness of the offence and the loss of two lives.

Judicial response and parental role in Pune Porsche accident case

Reacting to broader concerns about underage driving in the Pune Porsche accident case, the Supreme Court stressed that adults must act with more responsibility. The bench remarked that the issue is not limited to substance use by teenagers, but also the freedom given by families. The court underlined this by observing, "Substance abuse is another thing but giving them (children) car keys and funds to have a gala time is unacceptable," while considering the bail requests.

The initial decision by the Juvenile Justice Board in the Pune Porsche accident case did not remain unchanged. After public anger over the bail conditions for the juvenile, Pune police approached the board, seeking review. The board later altered its order and sent the minor to an observation home. In June, the high court directed that the juvenile be released from that facility.

Bail orders and accused list in Pune Porsche accident case

The latest Supreme Court order in the Pune Porsche accident case covers three adults accused of helping tamper with evidence. One of them, Amar Santish Gaikwad, moved the top court after the high court refused bail. On January 23, the Supreme Court issued notice to the Maharashtra government on Gaikwad’s plea and sought a detailed response before making a decision.

Investigators allege that Gaikwad, represented by advocate Sana Raees Khan, acted as a middleman in the Pune Porsche accident case. According to the prosecution, Gaikwad paid Rs 3 lakh to an assistant of a doctor at a hospital. The money was allegedly meant to arrange replacement of the juvenile’s blood sample with that of someone else, which raised serious concerns over the integrity of medical evidence.

Two other adults recently granted bail in the Pune Porsche accident case are Aditya Avinash Sood and Ashish Satish Mittal. Sood, aged 52, and Mittal, aged 37, were arrested on August 19 last year. Police said their blood samples were allegedly used for testing, instead of samples taken from two minors who were present in the car with the 17-year-old driver.

Earlier, on January 7, the Supreme Court had also asked the Maharashtra government to respond to bail petitions filed by Sood and Mittal in the Pune Porsche accident case. Both were represented by senior advocates Siddharth Dave and Siddharth Agarwal. Their names surfaced as part of the alleged plot to dilute evidence by confusing whose blood was actually tested after the crash.

The high court took a strict view of the alleged tampering in the Pune Porsche accident case. On December 16 last year, it rejected bail applications filed by eight accused, including Gaikwad, Sood and Mittal. Despite that earlier refusal, the Supreme Court has now decided that these three can be released on bail, while the wider criminal trial and related inquiries continue in lower courts.

While the juvenile has left the observation home, the Pune Porsche accident case still involves 10 adults who were taken into custody over alleged blood sample swapping. This group includes parents Vishal Agarwal and Shivani Agarwal, doctors Ajay Tawre and Shreehari Halnor, Sassoon Hospital staffer Atul Ghatkamble, accused Sood, Mittal and Arun Kumar Singh, and two middlemen. Proceedings against all of them remain ongoing.