The Supreme Court on Tuesday pulled up the police for delay in filing an appeal against the Delhi High Court order reducing the jail term of Sanjeev Nanda from five to two years in the BMW hit-and-run case.
A bench headed by Justice Deepak Verma sought an explanation from the police for the delay in approaching the apex court and posted the matter for hearing on Wednesday.
In a reprieve for Nanda, the Delhi HC had in July 2009 reduced his punishment from five to two years in jail after holding he could not have the knowledge that the tragedy could happen by his negligent driving. Nanda was behind the wheels when he mowed down six persons, including three policemen, with his BMW car on January 10, 1999.
The court had modified the trial court’s order by holding him guilty under Section 304-A (causing death due to rash and negligent act) and acquitting him of Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder).
It had also reduced by half the quantum of sentence against three others — businessmen Rajeev Gupta and his two employees Bhola Nath and Shyam Singh, who were punished for destruction of evidence in the case.
Gupta was sentenced to six months imprisonment as against one year awarded by a trial court. His two employees were awarded three months jail term. The case had drawn a lot of attention from civil society activists.
