Gurugram hit-and-run: Police say ‘intent was to kill’ after verifying footage

The 33-year-old gym owner Kalyan Bainsla, arrested in connection with the Gurugram hit-and-run case, has been booked for allegedly stalking and deliberately ramming his car into 27-year-old biker Shivani Chauhan, popularly known as Sia, police said.

Gurugram Police Commissioner Sibash Kabiraj said Bainsla was booked under an attempt-to-murder charge after police scrutinised Instagram videos and CCTV footage of the September 13 incident on Golf Course Road.

Also read: Gurugram hit-and-run: Accused's lawyer blames biker, says ‘she wants publicity’

Gurugram DCP (East) Sandeep Kumar said Chauhan told police that Bainsla had allegedly made indecent and obscene comments towards her before the collision. “It can be clearly seen that he deliberately hit (the biker) from the side after an argument; the intent was to kill the victim,” Kumar said.

Viral footage

The viral video showed a white Maruti Ciaz ramming into Chauhan’s Aprilia RS 457, knocking her off the bike and sending her skidding along the road.

Following Chauhan’s complaint, police added Sections 109 (attempt to murder), 78 (physical and digital stalking) and 79 (acts against the modesty of a woman) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) to the FIR. The case was initially registered under Sections 281 (rash driving) and 125 (causing hurt).

Bainsla and his cousin, Lovneesh, were in the car when the incident took place. Police have impounded the car, which is registered in the name of an acquaintance, and are verifying Lovneesh’s role.

Two-day search

After the incident, Bainsla switched off his mobile phone and went absconding. Three police teams tracked him to Dausa, Rajasthan, where they arrested him after a two-day search. Police said he later tried to escape custody on the pretext of urinating, fell and sustained injuries. He was given first aid at a hospital.

Dausa Sadar SHO Yudhishthir said Lovneesh allegedly drove Bainsla away from the spot, while another friend, Pramod, helped him flee from Tikri Gurjar village in Palwal. Police have also apprehended Pramod.

Accident claim

Bainsla, however, has denied deliberately hitting Chauhan and maintained that it was an accident. He said he “lost control near a U-turn” after asking the bikers to slow down.

Also read: ‘Felt unsafe on Gurugram roads’: Woman biker alleges car chased, rammed her

“About 20 to 22 motorcyclists sped past me. I didn't realise a young woman was riding one of the bikes; I had simply asked her and the young man accompanying her to slow down. I did not hit them intentionally,” he said.

His lawyer, advocate Naveen Bainsla, claimed that his client fled because he feared being attacked by the group of bikers. He also alleged that the videos shared by Sia and another rider were “edited and planted”.

Sia’s allegation

Chauhan has questioned why Bainsla did not stop after hitting her if it was an accident. She also alleged that she was deliberately targeted because she was a woman biker and that the accused made no attempt to check whether she was safe after the collision.

Police said Chauhan will be produced before a court for recording her statement under Section 183 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.

Also read: Woman biker rammed, Kargil veteran attacked: Incidents raise Gurugram safety concerns

Chauhan, a Delhi resident, has completed a course in fashion designing and contested the 2022 municipal elections from Kalkaji. Her father Roshan Chauhan is reportedly an Aam Aadmi Party member. Bainsla, a Palwal resident, runs a gym and works as a realtor, and claims to be an international kabaddi player. He has two children.

(With agency inputs)