MUMBAI: There is a growing feeling in Mumbai that the Aston Martin Rapide was driven by Akash Ambani, the son of India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani. Yet, evidences are still ‘unavailable’. People who are in charge of the investigation are reluctant to do their duties. We want to know the whole truth. Will it ever get out? Will it be allowed to get out?
Even though the social media is talking openly about who was behind the wheels in the accident on Mumbai’s Peddar Road involving a Reliance-registered luxury sports car, an Aston Martin Rapide (MH-01-BK99) worth Rs 4 crore, and two other cars (an Audi and a Hyundai Elantra), it seems the Mumbai police is trying its best to protect the identity of the real culprit. Despite a palpable gag on mainstream Indian media, a number of Mumbai-based newspapers, including the tabloid Mumbai Mirror, have already pointed out that it was Akash Ambani, son of the richest industrialist in the country, Mukesh Ambani, who was on the driver’s seat when the accident, took place at 1:30 am in the early hours of 8 December.
Unsubstantiated reports on social media immediately after the Peddar Road incident had hinted at two people losing their lives in the Aston Martin hit-and-run case, but these links and posts were either removed from the websites or led to dead links soon after the news spread, albeit in trickles. Millennium Post also tried contacting senior officers in Mumbai police, but the efforts of our reporters were met with an eerie silence on the other side, with most of the telephone calls remaining unanswered.
Reliance has stated that the car was being driven by a chauffeur and was headed for a ‘ritual maintenance’, but questions have been raised why was it being driven in the opposite direction and that too at 1:30 am on a Sunday. In fact, on Monday, Bansilal Joshi, the 55-year-old chauffeur who works for the Ambanis, ‘surrendered’ before the Gamdevi police, claiming he was driving the Aston Martin at the time of the accident.
Two sets of fingerprints have been discovered by forensic experts from the speeding car, and although, the finding of two sets of fingerprints does not directly contradict Joshi’s assertion, the cops are yet to take a stand. But news channels such as Zee 24 Taas claim a ‘fully drunk’ Akash Ambani was at the wheels in the car when the accident took place. Moreover, signals from the mobile tower point out that Bansilal Joshi was not present at the time of the accident.
Millennium Post contacted Himanshu Roy, joint commissioner of police, Mumbai crime branch, who said that the matter ‘did not belong to crime branch, but was under jurisdiction of the local (Gamdevi) police station’.
According to Mumbai Mirror, a show-cause notice has been issued against the cop investigating the matter, Assistant Inspector R Pawar, who reports at Gamdevi police branch.
No arrests have been made for the incident, although eyewitnesses of the horrific road mishap claim that a young man, whose description bears a strong resemblance with Akash Ambani, was seen on the driver’s seat, who, they add, later fled in one of two the tailing SUVs that were reportedly following the car for security purposes. The car was last seen at a bash organised by Mukesh Ambani in honour of cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, at which Akash Ambani was also present.
Only recently, Mukesh Ambani was picked as one among the 25 ‘Greatest Living Legends’ in India by NDTV on the occasion of its 25 years in service. How is it that NDTV Limited – a commercial entity, a listed company in Bombay Stock Exchange – holds a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan?
Would the presidential house be available to others for such private, invitation-only functions in future? Or was it that Rashtrapati Bhavan made an exception and obliged NDTV because of President Pranab Mukherjee’s long-standing association with the Ambani family?
Mukesh Ambani owns most of the leading news channels of the country and influences, if not downright controls, what they should be and should not be covering.
Why is the media silent on this matter, which has not invited a single biting comment from either the Congress or the BJP, with the sole exception of a tweet by J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah? Will Arnab Goswami speak up now because the nation really needs to know. (Courtesy Millennium Post)
It is very easy to determine if the son was driving or not. If he got into an accident then likely he will have some cuts, bruises etc. The police don’t need finger prints etc, just examine his body and that will say it all.