A 53-year-old Sion resident, who was allegedly driving his motorbike without a helmet on the JJ Flyover, on which two wheelers are banned, lost his life after his vehicle lost control on Saturday night.
According to the Pydhonie police, the deceased has been identified as Mangesh Gawde, a resident of the Sion Koliwada area. Eyewitnesses told the police that Mr. Gawde was driving towards Byculla on the flyover around 9:50 p.m. when his bike suddenly lost control, causing it to swerve. The bike crashed into the divider and he was thrown off the bike. He landed on the ground several feet away and started bleeding heavily.
Some employees of the Noor Hospital in Byculla, which overlooks the flyover, dialled the police control room, and a team of officers reached the spot. Mr. Gawde was rushed to the JJ Hospital where he was declared brought dead, the police said. After recording statements of eyewitnesses, according to which Mr. Gawde was driving at a high speed and had hung his helmet on the handlebar of his bike, the police posthumously booked Mr. Gawde for causing his own death.
“We have booked Mr. Gawde for rash driving and causing death due to negligence under the Indian Penal Code along with the relevant sections of the Motor Vehicles Act,” said Senior Police Inspector Sunil Kavlekar, Pydhonie police station. The Mumbai Traffic Police had imposed a ban on two wheelers on the JJ Flyover, after it was observed that the most number of two wheeler related accidents occurred on the flyover. The ban was challenged in the Bombay High Court, but the HC upheld it.
