Click to play videoNew Delhi: The Bombay High Court on Thursday pulled up the prosecution in the Alistair Pereira hit and run case, saying it was insensitive while dealing with the matter.
In a stricture for the lower court that acquitted Pereira of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, the High Court said it should have examined co-passengers as witnesses.
Terming the prosecution in the case as "insensitive", a bench of Chief Justice Swatanter Kumar and S C Dharmadhikari asked the Police Commissioner to explain certain "loopholes" in the investigation.
The court asked the Mumbai Police Commissioner to take personal interest in the case.
The Judges also asked the Investigating Officer to verify whether the victims have got the compensation and how they have invested the same.
In April, a fast- track court had held 21- year- old Pereira guilty of rash driving. Seven pavement dwellers were killed and eight injured in the incident on Carter Road.
Pereira, a young businessman, has been sentenced to six months in jail for mowing down seven pavement dwellers and injuring some others on Carter Road in suburban Bandra in November last year.
He was sentenced to six months in jail and was asked to pay a fine of Rs 5 lakh. There were allegations of serious lapses in the investigation.
The state government filed an appeal in the Bombay High Court seeking a stricter sentence. The government contends that Periera should be sentenced to a maximum of two years owing to the gravity of his offence.
The court is hearing two appeals in the case. One is a state government plea for enhancement of the sentence and the second is the court's suo motu notice on loopholes in the probe and handling of the case by the proseuciton.
Earlier, the court had restrained Pereira who is currently out on bail from leaving the state and asked him to surrender his passport.
(With agency inputs)
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