Who killed Siddharth Sharma?

Delhi’s hit-and-run case has the potential to be a landmark that can bring in stricter laws against underage drivers, and their guardians

WrittenBy:Akash Banerjee
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On April 4, businessman Manoj Aggarwal’s son was four days short of his 18th birthday when he rammed his father’s Mercedes into 32-year-old Siddharth Sharma, at a speed of approximately 100kmph, said NDTV.

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If Aggarwal thought that he could easily save his son on the grounds of him being a minor, he was in for a rude shock. After footage of the collision was sourced by the victim’s family from the CCTV across the road, and others installed in the locality, the Delhi Police was quick to act on the matter. Manoj Aggarwal was arrested for abetting homicide, and criminal omission. Criminal omission charge was added after it became clear that Aggarwal’s son was a repeat offender who was allowed to drive, despite at least three challans being issued in the past.
What could easily have been yet another statistic on the roads of Delhi may now become a landmark case that could redefine how the police (and hopefully the judiciary) handle brazen violations of the law by those who are technically ‘minors’.

While Aggarwal, who got bail on April 10, may take solace in the fact that parents of minors hardly do jail time there is precedent in this matter that dates back to 1950. Then the Supreme Court had upheld the conviction of the father who had given access of his truck to his minor son. Innocents had died when the truck ran over them. The under-aged truck driver’s father was punished.
What is remarkable in the Aggarwal case is that a minor is being booked for the graver charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, under IPC section 304.

This is a non-bailable offence. If found guilty, Aggarwal Jr could find himself in a juvenile home for two years.
What bolsters the Delhi Police’s case is that this is not a first time offence by Aggarwal Jr. Also, there were enough eyewitnesses inside and outside the car at the time of the accident. The CCTV footage also corroborates the sequence of events, the speed of the car and to dismiss any wild theories that may be floated by the defense.

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However, BS Bassi, former Commissioner of Delhi Police, reminded his colleagues that proving culpable homicide, not amounting to murder — would be a “tough call”. Causing death by accidents usually invites the milder 304A of the IPC – causing death any rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide. Even if convicted, the maximum sentence under this section is two years’ imprisonment.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (North), Madhur Verma, said, “We are aware that this is a stringent section that we imposed. However, we are collecting testimonials to establish a pattern, talking to legal experts to see court precedent and investigating the CCTV footage in a scientific manner. We have taken this case very seriously and a separate team has been tasked to handle every aspect of investigation.”


Of course Bassi is right. It will be tough, just like it was in the ’90s, to punish sons of powerful politicians. They could bully, extort, rape and even kill people – with the knowledge that their dads would bail them out – if need be.

Delhi’s “’Tu janta hai mera baap kaun hai?’ (do you know who my father is?) ” culture took a hard knock with the Jessica Lal murder, and Nitish Katara murder cases, in which after years of court rulings and intense media scrutiny, Manu Sharma and Vikas Yadav had to go behind bars.

Their powerful politician fathers failed to twist the judicial process beyond a certain point. Political brats like Sharma and Yadav are seen less today, sons of netas whip out pistols for matters graver than a glass of alcohol; because powerful parents have been made aware of the law.

Could the Mercedes hit-and-run case set up a similar precedent against blatant killing of people on the roads? “Certainly”, says Neelam Katara who fought a long and hard battle to put the killers of her son behind bars.

“We have come a long way since the days of Sanjeev Nanda and Salman Khan. In these cases, the cases were weakened right in the beginning. Now it’s not so easy to make up stories in court and the media pressure is intense. However there is a segment in society that thinks that these things ‘happen’ to boys and just need to be ‘handled’ well. That attitude of ‘bach jaayege’ (got away) needs to be changed.”

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“No one killed Jessica,” this Times of India headline undid the best laid plans of Manu Sharma, just as he was about to walk free. In the Aggarwal hit-and-run case too it will be the media that will have to play the critical role. The victim, Siddharth Sharma’s family has already shared CCTV footage of his death, ensuring that this incident became a human story that touched anyone who watched it.

Shilpa Mittal, who’s leading the fight for justice for her brother, is already feeling the pressure. “No one wants to work”, she said. “First, the police totally botched up the protocol by not picking up the driver and then there was no blood test to see if there were alcohol or drugs involved.” What disappointed her was that the courts let go of Aggarwal Sr after just one day in custody. However, Shilpa has vowed to fight on and even sourced more CCTV footage that show the accident and subsequent actions by Aggarwal Jr.

Meanwhile, the Delhi Police maintains it will have a strong case to present to the court. The question is, will the judiciary entangle itself in a decade-long case involving technicalities and legal lingo, or see this as a glaring example of how the law is trampled upon by rich fathers and their spoilt brats to take away innocent lives. If it’s the latter then we should get a landmark judgment. One that will ensure that not only the letter, but also the spirit of the law is upheld.

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