India’s Supreme Court on Monday granted bail to three people accused of aiding and abetting the alleged tampering of blood samples after the May 2024 Porsche crash in Pune that claimed the lives of two young software engineers.
A bench comprising Justices BV Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan ordered the release of Aditya Sood, Ashish Mittal and Santosh Gaikwad on bail, noting that all three have already spent 18 months in custody.
The court considers the length of custody against the charges
In its ruling, the Supreme Court stated that continued detention would cause disproportionate harm to the accused, especially given the nature of the charges and the maximum sentence set for the main crime.
“As there are no charges against the juveniles in the back seat of the car, it is unlikely that any charges will be brought against them. Since the charges have been brought, they have been in prison for 18 months. It has been submitted that the driver who caused the accident is also sentenced to three years. The juvenile is also being tried in the juvenile court. imprisoned at large.petitions allowed, let them be released on bail on terms fixed by the trial court.
The court added a clear caveat: “Any breach of the conditions will result in the cancellation of the bail granted.
Background: The Porsche crash in Pune that shocked the city
The case stems from a fatal accident that occurred at around 2:30 am on May 19, 2024 in the Kalyani Nagar area of Pune. A Porsche allegedly driven by a juvenile under the influence of alcohol rammed into a motorcycle, killing 24-year-old software engineers Aneesh Awadhiya and Ashwini Koshta, both from Madhya Pradesh.
According to the prosecution, the minor’s father, businessman Vishal Agarwal, his wife and other associates conspired with doctors at Sassoon Hospital to manipulate blood test results to show no trace of alcohol. It is claimed that ₹3 lakh were diverted through middlemen to hospital staff, with senior doctors accused of coordinating the manipulation.
The role attributed to the accused
Santosh Gaikwad allegedly acted as an intermediary and accepted ₹3 lakh for facilitating the handling of blood samples. Ashish Mittal, a Pune-based businessman and friend of the minor’s father, is accused of providing his own blood sample to replace that of another minor present in the car.
Aditya Sood, also a businessman, is the father of the boy who was sitting in the back of the vehicle. The prosecution claimed that he had similarly provided a blood sample on behalf of his son, who was neither driving the car nor named as an accused in the original FIR.
Earlier denial of bail by High Court
In December last year, the Bombay High Court rejected bail pleas filed by the accused, expressing concerns that the release of the financially powerful could lead to witness tampering and obstruction of justice.
The High Court noted that several key witnesses – including drivers, hospital staff and domestic workers – were dependents of some of the accused, making the risk of tampering with evidence “well founded”.
Arguments before the Supreme Court
Before the Supreme Court, the accused argued that their continued detention served no investigative purpose as the police had completed their investigation and laid several charges.
Mittal’s petition alleged that he was not present at the scene of the accident, had no role in any conspiracy and was only at Sassoon Hospital for a short time. He also cited serious heart conditions and argued that he had suffered two heart attacks while in custody, making his continued detention medically dangerous and unreasonable.
Sood claimed that he was falsely implicated and that, as the parent of the detained minor, he was only following the instructions of the hospital. His lawsuit emphasized that his son was a backseat passenger, not the driver, and is a prosecution witness rather than an accused. He also denied any connection to the alleged bribes.
Legal representation
Senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi, Siddhartha Dave and Siddharth Agarwal appeared for the accused. Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan represented the father of one of the victims.
Mittal was also represented by advocate Anand Dilip Landge, while Sood was represented by advocates Shakti Pandey, Abid Mulani and Divya Anand.
