Two months on, hit-and-run victim’s kin await closure

Mumbai: Family of a 29-year-old man, who was killed in a hit-and-run accident in Malad more than two months ago, still awaits justice and closure, as the accused, a truck driver, is yet to be arrested

Mumbai: Family of a 29-year-old man, who was killed in a hit-and-run accident in Malad more than two months ago, still awaits justice and closure, as the accused, a truck driver, is yet to be arrested.

Two months on, hit-and-run victim’s kin await closure

The deceased, Aman Jha, had bought a second-hand scooter on August 17. The same afternoon, he asked his mother, Babita, to come with him to Lord Hanuman temple at the Chincholi Bandar junction in Malad. Aman stayed with his parents and two younger sisters in the Poisar area in Kandivali and worked in a private firm in Mumbai.

At around 4pm the same day, Aman decided to take his scooter for a ride, while Babita followed him, riding pillion with his friend Navin D’costa, who also decided to accompany them. At around 4.30pm, as Aman approached the Raunak Masjid area in Malad, a speeding truck hit him from behind and sped away. The unfortunate incident unfolded in front of Babita and Navin.

“Passing motorists stopped to help and we rushed Aman to the Evershine Nursing Home in Malad, where he was declared dead at 5.15 pm,” Babita said in the FIR registered with the Bangur Nagar police the same evening.

Since then, Aman’s father, Pawan, has been running from pillar to post, first to get the post-mortem report and then to follow up on the progress of the investigation.

“I keep visiting the police station, and they keep telling me that they are looking into the matter. How long does it take for police to find one truck driver?” Pawan said.

He added that he even asked the police if they had found any CCTV footage, and they replied in the affirmative but are refusing to show it to him.

“The scene of the accident is near a mosque and there is also a restaurant nearby. I am sure both these establishments have their CCTV cameras, in addition to the ones already installed all over the city by the government. But even this aspect is being treated like some big mystery by the police. I don’t even know if they have spoken to eyewitnesses if they have made inquiries with the traffic police or the Regional Transport Office (RTO) or what they are doing in the first place,” Pawan said.

Meanwhile, Babita’s health deteriorated after seeing her son die.

“My wife has turned into a walking corpse. She refused to eat anything for over a month and was on a liquid diet. Even today, she is little more than a shadow of her former self. I am barely going through each day as it comes,” Pawan said.

Senior police inspector Pramod Tawde, Bangur Nagar police station could not be reached for comment.