Bengaluru Man Held for Taking Blame for MLA Haris’ Son’s Car Crash

Even though it has been three days since the crash, Nalapad Haris is yet to appear before the police.

For Mohammad Nalapad this is not the first brush with the law. He was arrested in 2018 for assaulting a man in a pub. 

(Photo: The Quint)

Bengaluru police have arrested a man on charges of cheating and impersonation, after he tried to take the blame for a road accident involving Shantinagar MLA NA Haris’ son.

The politician’s son Mohammad Haris Nalapad on Sunday, 9 February, had rammed his Bentley car into a two-wheeler and auto, injuring a mother-son duo and causing the biker to suffer a fracture.

The person identified as Balakrishna, a security detail working with MLA Haris, has been booked under IPC section 419 (cheating by impersonation) and section 201 (giving false information to screen offender), after he tried to take blame for the case.

The accident took place at Mekhri circle, near Malleshwaram on Sunday afternoon, when the Bentley crashed into the two vehicles, causing the auto and bike to topple over. The driver reportedly fled the spot in another car while bystanders tended to the victims.

As the cops were investigating the accident, on Monday morning, a man walked into the Sadashivanagar police station claiming that he was the one behind the wheel of the Bentley.

However, he was not able to provide suitable answers about his whereabouts and later admitted that he had been sent to impersonate the real driver. When police found videos of Nalapad on the wheel, they realised Balakrishna was lying.

After the police issued a notice to Nalapad for sending his gunman to take responsibility for the accident and asked him to appear before them, Nalapad turned up before the police at around 3:15 pm on Wednesday.

'Small Incident', Says MLA

Dismissing the matter, MLA Haris told mediapersons on Monday that it was a minor accident. "It is a small accident, not a big one. Accidents happen every day. Police are investigating and will take action as per the law," he said.

For Mohammed Haris Nalapad, this is not the first brush with law. He was arrested by the Cubbon Park Police on February 19, 2018, two days after he and his associates assaulted Vidvat, the son of a prominent businessman, in an uptown cafe in Bengaluru. He was denied bail by the sessions court multiple times and was in jail for 115 days, before he finally procured bail in June 2018.

“I was not in the car which met with accident. I was travelling in a Lamborghini car which was moving ahead of the car. However, I called people to rescue the victims. We took them to hospital and paid their hospital bill.”

Karnataka MLA NA Harris’ son Mohammed Nalapad.

Lamborghini Driver Gets Bail

Sunny Sabharwal (28), one of the directors of Fun World, has been booked by the police. (Photo Courtesy: The News Minute)

In the second incident involving an high-end car, the driver of the Lamborghini car that crashed into kiosk has been granted station bail. On 12 Wednesday, a mobile phone footage showing the crash emerged on the social media.

The footage shows three imported cars lining up at a traffic signal for drag race. A green Lamborghini is seen moving ahead and losing control before crashing into the police kiosk.

DCP Traffic (East) said they the driver was identified as 28-year-old Sunny Sabharwal, one of the directors of Fun World and Resorts India Private Limited. Police said he was identified using photos he posted on social media of him next to the police kiosk he had damaged.

On Monday, the investigating team went to Sunny’s residence in RT Nagar and informed his family members that he had been booked for rash and negligent driving. He was arrested and we imposed a fine of Rs 2,000. Since section 279 is bailable, he was let go after the arrest as he obtained station bail.