A 29-year-old man was killed in a hit-and-run accident on the Western Express Highway near Samta Nagar in Kandivali (E) in the wee hours of Sunday. The Samta Nagar Police have booked an unidentified accused under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Motor Vehicle Act for causing death due to negligence, rash driving among others. The police are scrutinising the CCTV camera footage to ascertain the identity of the accused motorist.
According to the police sources, the incident occurred at around 2.30 am on the northbound arm of the WEH, where the deceased, Shailesh Pandey, 29, a Dindoshi resident, was hit by a speeding vehicle. Police said that Pandey was frantically looking for his younger brother, who had gone missing and was searching for him from Borivali onwards. Pandey's father, meanwhile, was searching for the lost son at Vikhroli.
When Pandey was near Saidham temple, he tried to cross the WEH on foot in the middle of high-speed traffic. Suddenly, a four-wheeler came towards him and dashed into Pandey as the latter fell on the road after hitting a divider. While Pandey collapsed and the car ran over him. The driver of the car, however, fled the scene without helping or providing any medical aid to Pandey.
The police were alerted about the incident by two bikers, who rushed Pandey to the civic-run Shatabdi Hospital, wherein he was declared dead on arrival. Subsequently, a case was lodged and the investigation began. Pandey's family was contacted based on his Aadhar card and contact details found in his wallet.
Anandrao Haake, senior inspector of Samta Nagar Police said that they have checked the CCTV camera footage of the area and prima facie it seems that Pandey was jaywalking. "While we have booked the unidentified driver, the camera clarity is bad and the vehicle number is not visible. We are probing the matter and arrests will be made soon," added Haake.
