John Abraham appeals against conviction

Fifteen days after being convicted in a case of rash and negligent driving and for injuring two people, Bollywood actor John Abraham, on Friday, filed an appeal in the sessions court against his conviction.

Fifteen days after being convicted in a case of rash and negligent driving and for injuring two people, Bollywood actor John Abraham, on Friday, filed an appeal in the sessions court against his conviction.

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The Bandra metropolitan magistrate court had sentenced Abraham to 15 days of simple imprisonment on October 14.

“The lower court ought to have seen that either a person has committed a rash act or has been criminally negligent. He can’t do both,” said Abraham in his appeal.

Further, he added that the ‘judge has misconstrued and has, without applying the principles relating to the acts of rashness and criminal negligence, convicted the applicant (Abraham)’.

The appeal also stated that though the police had recorded the statements of various witnesses at the time of the incident, except for the evidence of one of the victims, ‘no other witnesses have been examined in respect to the alleged incident’.

According to Abraham, even the victim ‘has not made out a case of either criminal negligence or rashness against him.

“The lower court has relied upon hearsay evidence in convicting the appellant (Abraham), said the actor in his appeal.

The incident dates back to April 8, 2006, when Abraham had rammed his Suzuki Hayabusa bike into two youngsters on a bicycle at around 11.15 pm on Carter Road, Bandra.

After the accident, Abraham took the victims — Shyam Kasbe, 22, and Tanmay Majhi, 19, both working at Judo Wine shop at Pali Naka — to Bhabha Hospital.

Abraham, who was also injured, later got himself admitted to Lilavati Hospital.

According to the police, Abraham was returning from Maureen Wadia’s Gladrags show, while both the youngsters were returning after closing the shop.

The police later booked the actor under Sections 279 (rash driving or riding on a public way) and 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the Indian Penal Code.