After the Excise Department officials sealed the property 24 hours earlier, sections of the bar in Mumbai’s Juhu that provided alcohol to 24-year-old Mihir Shah were demolished by city officials on the 10th of July morning. The Vice-Global Tapas Bar sold liquor to the 24-year-old who is below the legal age for drinking, ahead of a collision between late 6th and early 7th July in which a BMW driven by him rammed a two-wheeler, killing a 45-year-old woman Kaveri Nakhwa and injuring her 50-year-old husband Pradeep Nakhawa. The pub was shut down for supplying alcohol to minors, supplying alcohol without a valid license and unlawful construction. These unauthorized portions were demolished.
The action was taken under relevant provisions of the Bombay Foreign Liquor Rules. The K/West (KW) ward officials of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) stated that on the evening of 9th July, the property was inspected by the authorities to determine whether any illegal alterations had been carried out to the property. The pub also received a letter from the excise department on the same day alleging that among other violations, the place was selling and distributing alcohol to unlicensed customers in an area designated for non-licensed restaurants.
An official stated, “During our inspection, we found out that a portion of the kitchen and the loft located at the front of the entrance were illegally built. We have initiated a demolition drive against these structures.” They mentioned that the bar has been open since 2022. A bulldozer and a group of officials were sent by the BMC to execute the demolition.
VIDEO | BMW hit-and-run case: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) razed a portion of the Vice Global Tapas Bar in Juhu, which had served alcohol to Mihir Shah, the 24-year-old accused, before the accident. pic.twitter.com/tQsUCBWRSU
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 10, 2024
The perpetrator’s father who was part of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena was removed from the position of the party’s deputy leader. According to the police, the Palghar Shiv Sena leader actively assisted in his son’s escape and intended to tow the offending vehicle away. According to an official, the investigation into the case has shown that the deceased was run over by driver Rajrishi Singh Bidawat shortly before the Bandra Worli Sea Link after being dragged there by the main accused Mihir Shah as the pair absconded.
Father of Mumbai hit and run accused Mihir Shah removed from Shiv Sena.
— Padmaja Joshi (@PadmajaJoshi) July 10, 2024
Rajesh Shah has earlier been arrested for helping his son evade arrest pic.twitter.com/3TQON5fgor
Rajesh Shah and Rajrishi Bidawat were produced in the court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (Sewree) SP Bhosale on July 8 and remanded in 14-day judicial and one-day police custody, respectively. Rajesh Shah was, however, later granted bail by the court on payment of Rs 15,000 on 8th July. The Mumbai Police revealed in their submission to the court that Rajesh Shah had contacted his son numerous times after the accident, instructing him to take Rajrishi Bidawat’s seat on the passenger side. He intended to blame the driver for the accident and protect his son. He arrived at the spot in a Mercedes, spoke to his son and asked him to flee.
Sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 281 (rash and negligent driving endangering human life), 125-B (endangering life and personal safety), 238, 324(4) (committing mischief amounting to cause loss and damage) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sahita have been invoked against Mihir Shah. Moreover, he faces charges under the Motor Vehicles Act’s Sections 184, 134A, 134B, and 187. On 9th July, he was taken into custody along with his mother and two sisters from an apartment in Virar, 65 kilometres away from Mumbai. The mother and sisters were nabbed from Shahpur. His friend Avdeep is also being questioned by the police. The police suspect they aided in hiding him.
Mihir Shah successfully evaded the authorities from 7th July and was arrested from Virar near Mumbai. The police unveiled that he left his car and driver behind in the Kala Nagar region and departed the scene in an auto-rickshaw. He then arrived at his female friend’s suburban Goregaon home. She got in touch with his sister, who came to Goregaon, picked them up and brought the two to her Borivali house. The Shah family then decided to escape, driving an Audi to a resort in Shahapur in the Thane district. The resort also hosted his two friends along with his sisters Kinjal and Pooja Shah and mother Meena Shah.
Mumbai Police tracked the number of one of the people who were with him after finding out the identity, however, the friend had also turned off his cell phone. After leaving the Shahapur resort late on 8th July evening, Mihir Shah and his friend arrived in Virar, whereupon his friend turned on his cell phone for fifteen minutes and police apprehended the two individuals as soon as they discovered the mobile tower location. According to witnesses, Mihir Shah had a beard when he departed a Juhu bar on the fateful night. He was clean-shaven when he was taken into prison, though authorities believe he might have changed this detail to hide his identity.
The accused reportedly admitted driving the BMW that struck with a scooter and killed a woman. According to police sources, he described his actions before and after the fatal accident during interrogation. Police sources conveyed that he started his evening with companions at the Tapas pub in Juhu. After giving his pals a ride home in a Mercedes, he took the BMW for a “joy ride” down Marine Drive. He took the wheel and switched seats with his driver near Haji Ali. He acknowledged driving the opulent vehicle when it crashed with the two-wheeler, hauling Kaveri Nakhwa for about 1.5 kilometres before abandoning her corpse on the road.
After the accident, Mihir Shah was terrified. He left the scene before his father could get to Bandra out of fear of facing consequences from his family. He took sanctuary in his girlfriend’s Goregaon home rather than going back to his own house. His statement supports the chronology of events that the police assembled using eyewitness reports and CCTV evidence. He is scheduled to appear in court when the cops intend to request his custody to conduct an additional investigation.
On camera, Mihir Shah and Rajrishi Bidawat were seen removing the woman from the bonnet, putting her on the road, and then mowing her down once more as they reversed the fancy car. “After she was dragged from Worli, Mihir and Bidawat stopped the car just before BWSL and removed the woman who had got entangled in the vehicle’s tyre. Bidawat then took the driver’s seat and ran the car over the victim while reversing. They then fled. They sped towards Kala Nagar where the vehicle’s engine stalled,” conveyed an officer.
