Mihir Shah, the 24-year-old accused in the Mumbai BMW hit-and-run case, has been remanded to police custody until July 16 after the prosecution revealed in court on Wednesday that he had altered his appearance to evade arrest. Shah was detained on Tuesday, two days after his BMW collided with a scooter, resulting in the death of 45-year-old Kaveri Nakhwa.
The prosecution described Shah’s actions as cruel and heartless, stressing the need to determine who assisted him in evading capture for two days. The police reported discrepancies in the statements provided by Shah and his driver, Raj Bidawat, who is also a co-accused in the case. Authorities are still searching for the car’s number plate, which was allegedly discarded by Shah.
To avoid detection, Shah shaved his beard and cut his hair, according to the police. The prosecution emphasized the importance of uncovering who helped him with his transformation. Additionally, they accused Shah of not cooperating with the investigation and providing misleading information. In defense, Shah’s lawyers, Ayush Pasbola and Sudhir Bhardwaj, argued that the number plate might have fallen off during the accident.
Shah’s father, Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah, was previously arrested for aiding his son’s evasion but has since been released on bail. Their driver remains in police custody until July 11.
Emerging details indicate that Mihir Shah contacted his girlfriend 40 times after the accident before abandoning the car and taking an auto-rickshaw to her house. She is likely to be questioned by the authorities.
In response to the incident, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde removed Rajesh Shah from his position as deputy leader of the Shiv Sena. This decision followed allegations from Pradeep Nakhwa, the victim’s husband, who claimed that the Shiv Sena would protect the accused due to his father’s political standing.
Eknath Shinde assured that justice would be served and pledged support to the victim’s family. “Whoever is guilty will not be spared; strict action will be taken against them. We stand by the family of the victim. We will provide legal and financial support to the aggrieved family. They are from our family,” Shinde stated, announcing a ₹10 lakh compensation from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for the Nakhwa family.