40 days on, auto driver who lied about 55-yr-old fainting, booked for knocking him down

Mumbai police have charged autorickshaw driver Shakir Ali for causing the death of Guffran Shaikh, who suffered head injuries after being hit on July 20.

MUMBAI: The Shivaji Nagar police have solved the mystery surrounding the death of a 55-year-old who was found lying on the road on July 20 and booked an autorickshaw driver on Sunday for allegedly causing his death by negligence.

The deceased, Guffran Mohammad Muslim Shaikh

The deceased, Guffran Mohammad Muslim Shaikh, was a resident of Bainganwadi. He was said to have “fainted” near the Shivaji Nagar signal in Govandi. Two of his relatives and the accused driver, Shakir Ali Moinuddin Shaikh, 24, rushed Guffran, who was suffering grievous head injuries, to the Shatabdi Hospital in Chembur. His family then shifted him to Sion Hospital, and later to the KJ Somaiyya Hospital and Research Centre in Sion, where he died during treatment on July 25. Following this, the Shivaji Nagar police registered an accidental death report.

His post-mortem report pointed to the unnatural cause of his death. “His post-mortem report said that the death was due to head injury and that he had suffered internal injuries in the head which had led to clotting and infection,” said a police officer. During the investigation, it came to light that the auto rickshaw driver, a resident of Shivaji Nagar, had hit Guffran on the road and lied to the family about the latter fainting in front of his three-wheeler.

The police carried out a comprehensive physical and technical tracing of Guffran on the day of the accident. “We learnt he was a tiffin supplier and had visited an optician earlier. We also checked his medical history and saw there was no reason for him to faint. This helped us trace the accused and conclude it was an accident,” said Mansingh Patil, who investigated the case.

“We spoke to the auto driver and asked him who else was present at the spot when the accident took place. We also checked the CCTV footage in the area, and it led us to eyewitnesses, Mohammad Rafique Mujahid and Sayyad Abbas, who said Shakir had hit Guffran with his auto and also took him to the hospital,” said the officer.

Based on this evidence, the police registered a case on Sunday under section 106 (1) (causing death by negligence) of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, against Shakir. They sent him a notice of appearance for investigations and let him go.