Kolkata: Court cancels bail for driver accused in fatal accident

KOLKATA: For the second time in three weeks, the fatal squad of traffic police has managed to approach a city court and cancel the bail of a driver involved in a fatal accident where the accused was charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
The driver, Kashif Humair (50) from Beck Bagan Row, had allegedly driven his car along the AJC Bose Road ramp from north to south in “a drunken condition with inadmissible speed” around 12.10am on February 5. When he reached Hastings Mazar, he hit the victim, truck driver Mrinal Kanti Jana (45), who was fastening the rope of his truck while hanging from the rear side of the vehicle, killing him instantly.

A city sessions court on Wednesday overturned another court order which granted Humair bail on February 14 and asked the driver to surrender.
“After being released on bail, till today, TI parade could not be held and the reason for the same is still unknown to the court. For rash and negligent driving, everyday a huge number of people are either severely injured or are ending up losing their lives. Allowing such type of people to enjoy liberty of bail, that too within a period of 10 days’ custody, would certainly put an impact on society, may be encouraging others to engage themselves in rash, reckless and negligent driving,” the court order read.
The court also observed that the lower court “ought not to have granted interim bail”, stating “merely sending the accused from PC to JC cannot be a ground for granting bail in a case like this.” The court ordered the accused to surrender before the magistrate within May 13.
The traffic police had claimed the breathalyser test showed 43% and blood has been collected for further tests. The accused was arrested the same night and spent a few days in police custody before being accorded bail.
The Calcutta High Court, in March, had overturned a lower court order granting anticipatory bail to a driver involved in a fatal road accident that took place on Bypass on November 6 last year. The fatal squad had moved the HC challenging the lower court order that was passed on November 25.