Mercedes hit-and-run: JJB denies bail to minor, blames parents

The Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) today denied bail to a minor boy, who had allegedly run over a 32-year-old man with his father's Mercedes, observing that he was a repeat offender and blaming his parents for allowing him to drive at such an age.
Sources privy to the proceedings said the board pulled up the parents of the boy, who has just turned major, saying they had promoted his habit of driving even when he was minor.
They said the JJB observed that repeated traffic rule violation challans failed to have any "reformative effect" upon the juvenile and it seemed his parents did not care.

They said the board has held the juvenile a repeat offender and added that parents gave him a car which endangered lives of others, which was bad parenting.
The sources said the board noted that youth was challaned four times for violating traffic rules relating to over- speeding, not wearing seat belt and involvement in a minor traffic accident at Maurice Nagar in north Delhi.
The incident took place on April 4 when marketing executive Siddharth Sharma was trying to cross a road near Ludlow Castle School and the speeding Mercedes hit him.

A case under IPC sections 304 A (causing death by rash or negligent act), 279 (driving on a public way so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life) and 337 (causing hurt by an act which endangers human life) was lodged.

The police booked the juvenile for the alleged offence of culpable homicide not amounting to murder and he was sent to the reform home.
The youth had sought bail on the ground that it was his right and claimed that the victim was also at fault as he was crossing the road in a wrong manner.
The police had earlier arrested a man who claimed to be
the actual driver of the Mercedes at the time of incident but did a volte-face after he got to know the victim was dead.
The driver and the boy's father, who was also arrested earlier, were granted bail by the court.

The boy's father, an Old Delhi businessman, was arrested under Sections 109/304 (abatement to culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the IPC. The driver was arrested for the offence under section 203 (giving false information respecting an offence committed) of the IPC.
The youth had appeared before a Delhi court to surrender and moved a bail plea which was rejected on the ground that it was a matter of JJB. He was then produced before the board.
The police had said that the car was being driven at a speed of at least 80 km per hour and Sharma was flung several feet in the air by the impact of the crash.

After the incident, a group of youths stepped out of the vehicle and fled the spot, abandoning the car there, it had said.