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BMW accident: Woman driver arrested, FIR alleges victims taken to hospital 19 km away at her behest

New Delhi, Sep 15 (PTI) The woman who allegedly drove the BMW car involved in the crash that killed a senior Finance Ministry official and left his wife injured in southwest Delhi's Dhaula Kuan was arrested on culpable homicide not amounting to murder and other charges on Monday after being discharged from a hospital, police said. Several questions were raised on the handling of the aftermath of the crash as the FIR alleged that the woman driver, Gaganpreet Kaur (38), took the victims, Navjot Singh and his wife Sandeep Kaur, to a healthcare facility more than 19 kilometres away from the accident site instead of any nearby hospital. Also, the victims' family alleged that Gaganpreet and her husband were treated before Navjot and his wife despite their serious injuries. A case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder has been registered against her under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The sections invoked include 281 (rash driving or riding on a public way), 125B (acts endangering life or personal safety of others), 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), and 238 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence, or giving false information to screen offender). According to the FIR, Navjot Singh (52), Deputy Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs and a resident of Hari Nagar, was killed when the BMW rammed into his motorcycle on Ring Road around 1.30 PM on Sunday. His wife, Sandeep Kaur, sustained multiple injuries and a fracture and remains under treatment. Gaganpreet Kaur, wife of Parikshit Makkar, is a resident of Gurugram. She and her husband, along with their two children and a maid, were in the BMW at the time of the crash. Her husband also sustained minor injuries. The accused woman took the victims, Navjot Singh and his wife Sandeep Kaur, to Nulife Hospital, which is owned by one of her relatives, in north Delhi's GTB Nagar, more than 19 kilometres away from the accident site. Navjot's family alleged that the small hospital, where Singh was declared "brought dead", was linked to the accused. "If he had been taken to AIIMS, Ram Manohar Lohia or the Army Hospital, maybe his life could have been saved," Bitti, the victim's sister-in-law, said. When questioned why she did not take them to a nearby hospital, accused Gaganpreet Kaur claimed that she panicked and only knew about that hospital because her children had been treated there during the COVID-19 pandemic, a senior police official said. Police sources said that there is a possibility of tampering with the medical reports of the accused woman who underwent treatment at the hospital and the matter is under investigation. In her statement to police, Sandeep Kaur said she had repeatedly pleaded with Kaur and her spouse to take them to the nearest hospital as her husband was unconscious and needed immediate treatment. "Instead, the lady took us to a small hospital in GTB Nagar, more than 19 kilometres away. That lady told me her name was Gaganpreet Kaur," she said. Navjot Singh was scheduled to get promoted in six months. Chaotic visuals from the site went viral on social media, showing the BMW turned turtle in the middle of the road, windshield shattered and doors flung open. A woman, believed to be accused Gaganpreet, was seen pulling passengers from the mangled car as passersby surrounded the scene. Nearby, Navjot Singh lay motionless in a pool of blood, while his wife was seen injured at a distance. Some people approached her to check if she was conscious, while many others continued filming. In her statement, Sandeep Kaur recounted that her husband was wearing a turban, while she herself was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash. "When we reached near Delhi Cantonment Metro Station, a blue BMW car came from behind at high speed and hit my husband's motorcycle. My husband fell on the road and sustained very serious injuries and multiple fractures to the head, face and legs. I too suffered injuries and multiple fractures in the accident on my head and legs. After some time, I also fell unconscious," she told in the FIR. The FIR records that the BMW was being driven by a woman with a male co-passenger. They put the injured couple into a van-type vehicle and were driven to GTB Nagar -- about 19 to 22 kilometres from the accident site -- despite several top hospitals being located nearby. Meanwhile, in an updated statement, the police said that during further interrogation, Gaganpreet told investigators that she was in a state of panic after the crash and could not recall how it happened. She said some people took her out of the overturned BMW. She also admitted seeing the deceased and his wife lying on the road. Investigators said she asked the driver of a van, Mohammad Gulfam, to take the victims to a hospital in GTB Nagar. Police said her blood samples have been taken and reports regarding possible intoxication are awaited. Gulfam, who took all four injured people -- the official, his wife and the BMW occupants -- to the hospital, said he was driving a loading vehicle when he saw the accident and stopped to help. "Many bystanders were recording videos of the accident site immediately after it happened, but did not help. I didn't wait for an ambulance. With the help of some people, I took them all to a hospital after the man and the woman in the car asked me to take them there," Gulfam told PTI. "They were in a serious condition. After 20 to 25 minutes, the doctor declared Navjot Singh dead," he said. The police recorded Gulfam's statement on Monday. Singh's family and relatives have expressed anger and disbelief over the way he was handled after the crash. The living room of his residence in Hari Nagar was filled with muffled sobs on Monday. His elderly parents, neighbours and relatives sat in shock. Singh's father, a retired Air Force officer, remembered his son's professional achievements, from accompanying Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to Spain to speaking at the UN earlier this year before 178 countries. His mother recalled receiving a call from the doctor on Singh's phone. "At first, we thought it was something small. We never imagined it was so big. But we lost the backbone of our family," she said. His sister accused the woman BMW driver of indifference. "Even if we excuse her for the accident, she should have thought of saving their lives rather than covering it up," she said. "If he had been taken to AIIMS, Ram Manohar Lohia or the Army Hospital, maybe his life could have been saved," a relative said. Singh's son alleged negligence on the part of the hospital where his parents were taken. He claimed his mother was made to sit in the lobby despite her serious injuries, while the husband of the BMW driver, who had only minor injuries, was admitted immediately. The family later shifted Sandeep Kaur to Venkateshwara Hospital in Dwarka for better treatment. "My mother, who is a teacher, is devastated, and so are we," he said. Meanwhile, a doctor of the hospital where they were rushed, defended their handling of the case. She said, "A man in his fifties was brought dead on arrival, while his wife had multiple injuries but her vitals were stable. We administered first aid, informed the police, and on the family's request, allowed them to shift her to another hospital. Two other patients, the car occupants, were also treated. "One was discharged after observation, while the other was referred to a higher centre. Every patient is important to us, regardless of who they are, and we treat them according to emergency medical standards." PTI BM SSJ SGV BUN RT

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