Underage rider dies in road mishap: Family says he was hit by cops, Bandra police refute allegations

A 17-year-old biker, riding triple-seat, died in a road mishap at Reclamation in Mumbai’s Bandra area on Saturday night.

While cops say it was a case of rash and illegal riding, the teen’s parents have alleged that he met with an accident after he was hit by a traffic cop.

The incident:

The rider, Imran Sayyad, was on a joyride with his two friends Sayyad Sajid (17) and Javed Shaikh (17) on Saturday night. The trio were headed towards Bandra-Worli sealink around 11:30 pm, when Sayyad spotted a police nakabandi.

The Dharavi resident asked his friend Shaikh to get down from the bike and took an illegal U-turn on the highway in a bid to evade cops. While riding on the wrong side of the raod, he hit a divider and fell off the bike.

Both Sayyad and Sajid, riding without helmets, sustained injuries and were rushed to Bhabha Hospital for treatment. While Sajid suffered multiple fractures, Sayyad succumbed to his head injuries before he could be admitted.

Sajid was discharged the following morning.

The deceased had left studies and was helping his brother with his business.

Family alleges wrongdoing

Following the accident, Sajid claimed that one of the constables hit Sayyad on the forehead with a lathi due to which he lost his balance and dashed into the divider.

“One constable ran behind Shaikh while the other hit Sayyad on the head, because of which he lost balance, fell on the ground and died,” he was quoted saying.

Sayyad’s family subsequently alleged wrongdoing on the cop’s part. His uncle, Abdul Shaikh, also demanded a thorough investigation into the matter to ascertain if any cop was involved.

Cops dismiss allegations

Bandra police have refuted the family’s allegations and asserted that the rider fell on his own.

“Sayyad saw the nakabandi asked one of the pillion riders to get off. As he was riding on the wrong side, he dashed his bike into the divider,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 9), Paramjit Singh Dahiya.

Pandit Thakarey, Senior Inspector of Bandra police station, also confirmed that the rider had taken a U-turn after spotting the cops and was riding on the wrong side of the road when the mishap took place.

Dahiya also told reporters that the CCTV footage from a nearby camera showed that cops were a few hundred metres away from the accident spot. The same could be corroborated by a dozen eye-witnesses.

Meanwhile, a case under section 304 (a) of the IPC has been registered against Sayyad and further investigation into the matter is underway.