Medical tests showed that Nooriya Haveliwala was drunk and high on drugs at the time of the accident. But the police goofed up on the procedure of blood sample collection and the prosecution in presenting a strong case
Though the medical report showed that US national of Indian origin Nooriya Haveliwala was drunk and high when she rammed her speeding SUV into a bike and police jeep on January 30, 2010, and killed two persons, the beautician’s defence team ensured that the stringent charges under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act were dropped against her.
While the police had collected enough evidence against her, the prosecution faltered in putting up a strong case, leaving the special NDPS court no choice but to give Nooriya the benefit of doubt.
On Thursday, Nooriya was sentenced to five-year rigorous imprisonment and a Rs5 lakh fine for causing death due to rash and negligent driving and culpable homicide not amounting to murder. “The judge observed that directory measures were not taken by the medical officer concerned due to which the sections under the NDPS Act were dropped,” said Kiran Arvind Raikar, public prosecutor.
On January 30, 2010, Nooriya rammed into a bike and a police jeep at Marine Drive. While a traffic police sub-inspector and the biker died on the spot, four other traffic constables were injured.
The prosecution had relied heavily on the blood samples taken by the police in a government hospital after the accident. But to ascertain if she was high on prohibited substances, the police had to collect a prescribed quantity of blood (0.5%), and send it for forensic test to check the amount of drug consumed.
While the report revealed that Nooriya had consumed morphine and cannabis, the sample collected was not as per the rules laid down by the NDPS Act. Relying on a Gujarat high court judgment, the defence prayed that the charge could not be proved against Nooriya as it was not in line with the procedure. The court accepted the argument and the prosecution failed to bring home the guilt of Nooriya.
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