No more jail in BMW hit-and-run case

The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that Sanjeev Nanda, accused in the 1999 BMW hit-and-run case, will not have to undergo any more jail sentence.

Partially upholding the Delhi Police´s appeal to enhance Nanda´s punishment, the court ordered his conviction on the higher charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

The court directed Nanda to pay Rs 50 lakh to the Union Government as compensation for the victims and also do two years of community service.

An inebriated Nanda had crushed six persons to death, including three policemen, while driving his BMW car in the wee hours of January 10, 1999 at Lodhi Colony in South Delhi.

In September 2008, he had been found guilty of culpable homicide by a trial court and was sentenced to five years in jail.

However, the Delhi High Court later said that the prosecution failed to prove that Nanda had intentionally ran over seven men, six of whom had died.

An investigation by a TV news channel exposed attempts to manipulate witnesses and destroy evidence by the defendants.

In an expose, R K Anand, the counsel for Nanda, was seen offering the main witness in the case money to change his testimony.

Acquitting him of the charges against Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), the High Court convicted Nanda on Section 304-A (causing death due to rash and negligent act).

As part of the verdict, Nanda's sentence was reduced to two years by the court in July 2009, having served which, he is free now.

The Delhi Police however had appealed to the Supreme Court against the High Court verdict and sought a higher jail term of 10 years under stringent provisions of law.

The Supreme Court had on Wednesday acquitted three co-accused in the BMW hit-and-run case, saying there were discrepancies in the evidence put forward against them.