New Delhi, March 10 – The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted bail to the father of the minor, allegedly driving a Porsche car under the influence of alcohol in Pune in 2024, which resulted in the death of two people.
The incident occurred on May 19, 2024, when the Porsche car, allegedly driven by the 17-year-old boy under the influence of alcohol, fatally hit two IT professionals in Kalyani Nagar, Pune.
A bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan granted bail to Vishal Agarwal, who is accused of conspiring to swap blood samples of the minor to ensure that the occupants of the car receive a "Nil Alcohol" report.
The Supreme Court noted that the case reflects the mindset of Indian society, where people seek to circumvent the law.
Justice Nagarathna also questioned the role of educational institutions in instilling constitutional values among children.
The Supreme Court noted that the other accused in the case have been granted relief, and the accused has been in jail for the past 22 months.
"We note that the appellant herein has been in jail for the last 22 months. The appellant has made out a case for bail. Bail granted subject to terms and conditions to be imposed by the trial court," the bench ordered.
During the hearing, the Maharashtra government opposed the granting of bail and argued that the principle of parity with other co-accused would not apply to Agarwal's case.
The Supreme Court, however, restrained Agarwal from contacting any witnesses in the case and directed the trial court to conclude the trial expeditiously.
"The petitioner shall not make any attempt to contact the witnesses either directly or indirectly. Any violation of the conditions shall entitle the state to seek cancellation of the bail. We also direct the concerned trial court to conclude the trial at the earliest," the bench ordered.
Justice Nagarathna stated that Agarwal's actions cannot be used to curtail his liberty before a conviction.
"All this reflects the mindset of Indian society. That everyone wants to get out and to get the better of the law," she told lawyers representing different parties.
The state government's counsel argued that the principle of parity cannot be applied in this case as Agarwal arranged Rs 5 lakh through his wife to bribe officials and manipulate blood samples to obtain a favorable medical report.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing Agarwal, argued that the minor was driving the car, but a driver was also present in the vehicle.
Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing the father of one of the victims, opposed the granting of bail and argued that the case involved a conspiracy to subvert the justice system after the accident.
"Thousands of road accidents happen in this country every day. Many involve intoxicated drivers and minors. This case is not about the accident and death of my child," he stated.
Justice Nagarathna observed that the prosecution must secure a conviction through the trial process.
Sankaranarayanan argued that witnesses had stated that they were used in the alleged conspiracy, and Agarwal had managed to influence other families of children involved in the case.
He argued that a strong message needs to be sent to society. Justice Nagarathna stated that bail cannot be denied simply to send a message to society, and it cannot come at the cost of a man losing his liberty.
"These are all symptoms of the problems that exist in society. When a matter comes before the Supreme Court, we cannot just say that the trial court has denied the relief and the high court has denied the bail, and therefore, we would also deny it," she said.
On February 27, the Supreme Court granted bail to a doctor arrested for allegedly tampering with the blood samples of the minor, accused of crashing a Porsche car into a motorcycle in Pune and killing two people.
The court, on February 2, granted bail to three accused in the case, while observing that parents are to blame for such incidents involving juveniles as they do not have control over their children.
The Bombay High Court, on December 16 last year, rejected the bail pleas of eight accused in the case.
The Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) had granted bail to the minor accused on lenient terms, sparking nationwide outrage.
The bail conditions included writing a 300-word essay on road safety. As bail to the accused juvenile triggered outrage, the Pune Police approached the JJB to review its decision.
The board then modified the order and sent the juvenile to an observation home.
The high court subsequently ordered the release of the juvenile.
While the juvenile involved in the case was released from an observation home, 10 accused, including his parents Vishal Agarwal and Shivani Agarwal, doctors Ajay Tawre and Shreehari Halnor, Sassoon Hospital's staffer Atul Ghatkamble, Sood, Mittal and Arun Kumar Singh, were sent to jail in the blood sample-swapping case.