Vadakara hit-and-run case: Crime Branch submits chargesheet-OxBig News Network

Accused Methil Punathil Shajeel.

The District Crime Branch has submitted a chargesheet in the Vadakara hit-and-run case of February 2024 that claimed the life of an elderly woman and left her nine-year old granddaughter in a state of coma.

The accused, Methil Punathil Shajeel, who was repatriated from Dubai, was charged under Sections 279 (rash driving), 304 A (causing death by negligence) 338 (causing grievous hurt by an act which endangers human life), and 201 (causing the disappearance of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code. The charge sheet was filed at the Vadakara Judicial First Class Magistrate Court in Kozhikode on Friday (February 15).

The incident occurred on the national highway at Chorode in Kozhikode district on February 17, 2024. According to the police, Mr. Shajeel allegedly hit a 68-year-old woman, identified as Baby, and her grandchild, Drishana, at high speed while they were crossing the road around 10 p.m. The elderly woman died on the spot, while her grandchild was admitted to the Government Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode. She continues to be in a state of coma.

The accused reportedly fled the spot and got his vehicle repaired to cover up the incident. He also claimed insurance benefits to get the repairs done at a private workshop in Vadakara. It took the police 10 months to track the vehicle involved in the accident and the suspect who fled to Dubai on March 14, 2024.

DySP V.V. Benny of the District Crime Branch, who submitted the chargesheet, said there were around 10 witnesses in the case, including the person who repaired Mr. Shajeel’s car after the accident. The police have submitted documents related to the car, its insurance claim, and the mechanic’s bills, while the car itself and the shattered glass serve as material evidence.

“The headlight and the bumper were not found and hence could not be included. But we have the photos that Mr. Shajeel submitted for the insurance claim”, the DySP said.

The Nadapuram police had earlier filed a case against him for forging documents to obtain an insurance claim.