Rash driving: High Court upholds 1-year jail term
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Rash driving: High Court upholds 1-year jail term

Post by on Tuesday, June 7, 2022

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Srinagar, June 06: Upholding the sentence of a man in a road accident case, the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh held that the duty of care towards a pedestrian attains a higher degree when the pedestrian happens to be a child of tender age.
Hearing a revision petition filed by Showkat Ahmad Nadaf who was convicted by the trial court for the charges of rash and negligent driving which caused death of a minor girl, the court noted that the deceased was only a 3-years-old child, therefore, duty of care imposed upon the accused towards the child victim was all the more of a higher degree which the circumstances would clearly indicate, the accused had failed to observe or discharge.
The accused was convicted by the Judicial Magistrate, 1st Class (2nd Additional Munsiff), Srinagar on August, 20, 2013 for offences under Section 279, 304-A RPC and sentenced to imprisonment for a period of one year and a fine of Rs.2000 in proof of offence under Section 304-A RPC and for a period of two months and a fine of Rs.500 in proof of offence under Section 279 RPC.
Perusing the material on record Justice Sanjay Dhar noted that it has been established by the prosecution that the accused was driving the vehicle at the relevant time and the deceased was knocked down by the said vehicle which resulted in fatal injuries to her.
"The evidence on record shows that not only was the deceased knocked down by the vehicle driven by the accused but she was run over by the vehicle as much as she came underneath the wheels of the vehicle," Justice Dhar said.
The court noted that the fact that the accused could not control and stop the vehicle after the deceased was hit by the vehicle and she came underneath the wheels of the vehicle clearly shows rashness on the part of the petitioner.
"The circumstances established on record in this case speak for themselves," it underscored.
The court pointed out that the accused at the time of recording of his statement under Section 342 of the J&K Cr. P. C, admitted that at the relevant time he was learning driving and that he does not know how the girl child came underneath his vehicle.
"Thus, when the statement of the accused/petitioner recorded under Section 342 of the Cr. P. C is read in the light of the prosecution evidence narrated hereinbefore, it can safely be stated that the petitioner/accused was responsible for the accident," the court said.
It noted that the fact that he plied the vehicle without the assistance of a trained driver on a busy road in the market clearly goes on to show that the accused has acted "recklessly and negligently."
Dismissing the plea of the accused, the court directed the accused to surrender before the trial court within fifteen days from today and "once he surrenders before the trial court, he shall be sent to the jail for serving the sentence in accordance with law."
"In case the petitioner/accused does not surrender before the trial court within the aforesaid period, the trial court shall adopt coercive methods for securing his presence in the court," Justice Dhar ordered.