In a significant incident in the Pune Porsche crash case, it has been revealed that bribe money for swapping the blood samples of the 17-year-old accused was exchanged at the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) office. Pune Police obtained CCTV footage showing ₹3 lakh being handed over at the JJB office, bringing the case into the spotlight for bureaucratic corruption.
The incident took place on May 19, when a Porsche driven by a 17-year-old boy crashed into a motorbike, resulting in the deaths of IT professionals Anish Awadhiya and Ashwini Koshta in Kalyani Nagar. The teenager, reportedly driving under the influence of alcohol, was arrested and remanded to an observation home for juveniles on May 22. His remand, which was due to end on June 12, has now been extended until June 25.
UNBELIEVABLE.
Bribe money for the teen’s blood swap in the Pune Porsche case was paid *AT THE JUVENILE JUSTICE BOARD*. Pune Police get CCTV footage showing ₹3 lakh exchanging hands AT THE JJB office, reports @omkarasks pic.twitter.com/HF3WoNQo4I
— Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) June 12, 2024
In connection with the case, the juvenile’s parents are also in police custody, facing allegations of conspiring to swap their son’s blood samples. Dr Ajay Taware, the doctor accused of orchestrating the sample swap, is also in custody. Investigations revealed that Dr Taware has a network of brokers across Maharashtra who bring him cases requiring expedited processing in exchange for bribes.
Further police investigations have exposed Dr Taware’s extensive network of brokers operating primarily in the western parts of Maharashtra. These brokers would secure cases for expedited treatment in exchange for a bribe, which Dr Taware would then pocket. This network suggests the possibility of numerous bureaucratic cover-ups involving Dr Taware.
Dr Taware, along with staff members from the state-run Sassoon Hospital, including Chief Medical Officer Dr Shrihari Halnor and staff member Atul Ghatkamble, is accused of swapping the minor’s blood samples. The samples were allegedly replaced with those of another person who had no traces of alcohol, crucial evidence as police claim the teenager had visited two pubs before the incident.
Dr Ajay Taware is not new to controversy, his name was previously linked to a kidney racket in 2022. In addition, he has been accused of manipulating a gender test report in a marital dispute involving the daughter-in-law of a retired customs commissioner five years ago.
The revelation that the bribe money for the blood sample swap was exchanged at the Juvenile Justice Board office underscores the depth of corruption involved in the case.
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