 "Mumbai BMW hit-and-run: How ‘mistake’ by Mihir Shah’s friend helped police track him down")
Mihir Shah, who allegedly fatally knocked down a woman with his BMW in Mumbai’s Worli, has been arrested by the police, 72 hours after the accident. He is the son of Shiv Sena (Shinde camp) leader Rajesh Shah, who is reportedly a close aide of Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde.
Mihir had been on the run since the incident on early Sunday (July 7) which took the life of a woman. How did the Mumbai Police finally catch the 24-year-old accused?
Let’s take a closer look.
How police arrested Mihir Shah
The Mumbai Police was able to track Mihir Shah’s location due to his friend’s mobile phone.
The accused was found in Virar, around 65 km from Mumbai, after the police got information about his location, Indian Express reported citing police officials.
A friend who was with Mihir switched on his phone for 15 minutes on Tuesday morning due to which the police found his location and nabbed the politician’s son.
“Mihir was hiding with his mother Meena, two sisters Pooja and Kinjal in a resort at Murbad. On Monday night, one of Mihir’s Palghar-based friend went there after which Mihir went to Virar along with the friend,” an officer told the newspaper on the condition of anonymity.
As many as 12 people, including Mihir’s mother and sisters, have been taken into custody.
Sources told NDTV that it took 72 hours for the police to apprehend the accused as Mihir, his mother and sisters had turned off their mobile phones.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe police were looking for his family through their car number. The mobile phone of Mihir’s friend who was with him was also under surveillance.
“Our team had initially traced Mihir’s family in Murbad from where we got the mobile number of the friend, following which his number was put on surveillance,” an officer told Indian Express.
“We have apprehended Mihir and are probing further to understand the sequence of his hiding locations after he escaped from the accident spot,” the officer further stated.
ALSO READ: Mumbai BMW hit-and-run: Who is Mihir Shah Shiva Sena leader’s son who has been nabbed after 3 days?
Mumbai BMW hit-and-run case
On early Sunday, Mihir allegedly rammed the BMW car into a two-wheeler carrying
Pradip Nakhwa and his wife Kaveri Nakhwa in Worli. The 50-year-old man sustained injuries, while his wife died.
Kaveri, 45, was dragged for nearly 1.5 kilometres after she got trapped between the bumper and the tyre of the car.
When Mihir was allegedly driving the BMW, his driver, Rajrishi Bidawat, was in the passenger seat.
According to the Mumbai Police, Mihir switched seats with the driver, removed Kaveri’s body from under the car and left her on the road.
Bidawat then allegedly reversed the car and ran it over the woman’s body again before speeding off.
Mihir contacted his father Rajesh , who, the police say, told him to flee and directed the driver to take responsibility for the accident, reported Indian Express.
The Mumbai Police arrested Rajesh and Bidawat but the Shiv Sena leader was released on bail.
The driver was produced before a court yesterday and remanded in police custody until July 11. The police told the court that Bidawat was “aware of his actions and helped the other accused”.
According to the Mumbai Police, Mihir had visited a bar in Juhu with his four friends just hours before the accident.
He spent Rs 18,730 at the Vice – Global Tapas bar where the accused and his friends stayed until 11 pm, reported NDTV.
The Maharashtra excise department sealed the bar on Monday night.
Where was Mihir Shah hiding?
After the accident, Mihir left the BMW near Kala Nagar and reached his girlfriend’s house in Goregaon, the police say.
The girlfriend then called Mihir’s sister informing her about the accident. The sister came to the house in Goregaon, picked up the accused and drove to their Borivali residence, as per the NDTV report.
After that, Mihir, his mother and two sisters hid in different hotels in Thane. They, along with Mihir’s friend Avdeep, then went to a resort in Shahpur, nearly 70 km from Mumbai, the report added.
On Monday night, Mihir left his family and came to Virar with his friend. The police caught him from an apartment there.
The husband of the victim has questioned Mihir’s delay in arrest, lamenting he “will get bail”.
“We are poor. Who is there to support us… today, he will be sent to jail. Tomorrow [Wednesday] he will be produced in court and then he will get bail,” Pradeep Nakhwa was quoted as saying by NDTV.
“He was arrested three days after the accident. Why was he hiding? If he didn’t do anything, if he didn’t have alcohol or drugs, why did he run?” the grieving husband asked.
Mihir Shah will be produced in Mumbai’s Sewri court on Wednesday.
Politicians react
Congress MP Varsha Gaikwad has questioned the police’s role in the delay in Mihir Shah’s arrest.
“Police took three days to arrest the accused… now alcohol can’t be traced in his body. Why did this happen? He should have been arrested on the same day…” she told reporters on Tuesday.
#WATCH | Congress leader Varsha Gaikwad says, " ...The family is demanding justice. If you look into it, this is not a case of hit and run but murder, because after hitting the couple, if he had stopped the car, then this would not have happened. Instead, he drove the vehicle… https://t.co/mGpoBeXkks pic.twitter.com/6a1MbbL815
— ANI (@ANI) July 9, 2024
Meanwhile, CM Shinde has expressed concern at the “rise in hit-and-run incidents in Maharashtra.”
“No one, whether rich, influential, or the offspring of bureaucrats or ministers, affiliated with any party, will have immunity as long as I am the Chief Minister of the State. I have zero tolerance for injustice,” he wrote in a post on X.
With input from agencies
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
