Delay in arrest to make police task difficult

The police suspects Utsav was drunk at the time of the accident. But proving it will be difficult due to the delay in his arrest.

The police suspects Utsav was drunk at the time of the accident. But proving it will be difficult due to the delay in his arrest.

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“It appears the driver was drunk. But as he fled the spot immediately after the incident, nothing could be established,” said HGS Dhaliwal, DCP (south).

Normally, traces of alcohol can be detected in a person’s bloodstream within 24 hours of his last drink. “It has been 18 hours since the accident. By now, traces of alcohol would have vanished from his body,” said a police officer at 9 pm on Thursday.

Ulhas Giri who investigated the Sanjeev Nanda case, said, “We took Nanda’s blood sample eight hours after the incident. We could prove drunken driving because he had consumed 115 mg/unit of alcohol against the permissible limit of 35 mg/unit. Now it depends on how much Utsav drank.”

If the police fails to get Utsav’s blood tested in time, it will have to depend on circumstantial evidence to press charges.

“The manner in which the accident happened and other evidence picked up from the scene of crime could help the police,” said Praveen H. Parekh, a lawyer.