Congress MLA NA Haris’ son Mohammed Nalapad on Wednesday appeared before the Sadashivnagar Traffic Police in Bengaluru for questioning in connection with the accident involving a Bentley Continental GT. The Bengaluru Police on Tuesday said that Nalapad was driving the black Bentley along the Mekhri Circle underpass on Sunday afternoon and rammed into a bike and autorickshaw, injuring two people.
“I was not the one driving the Bentley. I was in a Lamborghini ahead of the Bentley. Balu (Balakrishna, Nalapad’s bodyguard) was the one who drove the car. Some channels are saying that he does not know how to drive a Bentley and that is not true. He has been my driver for so long. I helped the people who were injured and took them to the hospital and paid the hospital bills. This is a conspiracy against me,” a teary-eyed Nalapad told the media after police questioning.
Nalapad claims he did not drive the Bentley, which rammed into a bike and auto on Sunday in Bengaluru. He says his bodyguard was behind the wheel and even resorted to tearing up. @thenewsminute pic.twitter.com/kMgvRilQ6y
— Theja Ram (@thejaram92) February 12, 2020
Nalapad questioned the media as to why he was being portrayed as a “goonda”. This isn’t the first time that he has been accused of breaking the law. The MLA’s son was in the spotlight in 2018 after a case of attempted murder was registered against him at the Cubbon Park Police Station. Nalapad was accused of brutally beating up Vidvat, son of a prominent businessman, at an uptown café in Bengaluru.
“Why are you people (media) portraying me as a goonda? Goonda, goonda, goonda. That’s all you people say. Haven’t I changed. After that incident, since the last two years, I have tried to change so much and yet you people keep saying goonda. The headlines are so misleading that my father-in-law asked me if I had killed two people. I did not drive the car,” Nalapad said.
The Sadashivnagar Police on Wednesday arrested Balakrishna, Nalapad’s bodyguard, who had surrendered to the police on Sunday claiming that he was the one driving the car. The police have booked him under sections 279 (rash and negligent driving) and 337 (causing hurt by act of negligence) and relevant sections of the Motor Vehicles Act. “Since it is a bailable offense, Balakrishna has been granted bail,” the police added.
This comes after Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Ravikante Gowda had on Tuesday said that Mohammed Nalapad was the one behind the wheel. Ravikante Gowda said that Balakrishna had surrendered to the police on Sunday soon after the accident. He, however, claimed that Balakrishna was lying about being the one behind the wheel of the Bentley and that the police had evidence of Nalapad driving the car.
At around 2.30 pm on Sunday, the Bentley Continental GT (TS 09 UC 9), which was speeding along the Mekhri Circle underpass rammed into a bike bearing the license plate number KA 03 EV 8346 and later rammed into an autorickshaw bearing the license plate KA 05 AD 4756.
The two-wheeler rider Praful Kumar, an engineer, and the autorickshaw driver Abdul sustained injuries and were admitted to a nearby private hospital. A woman named Sabiha and her six-year-old son also sustained minor injuries and were administered first aid.