Iranian tourist runs over a man on Mumbai-Pune expressway

Garvandeh Hamedni Dariuosh

Answering nature's call on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway turned fatal for a 35-year-old man as a foreign national driving towards Pune ran him over on Thursday. The accident took place around 2 pm, as the Iranian man, driving a Honda City crashed into a Tavera and its driver, Mohammad Ali Farukh Ali, 35, standing beside it. An accident case has been registered by Khalapur police; the Iranian has been detained.

Garvandeh Hamedni Dariuosh, 44, came to India a month ago on a tourist visa and has an international driving licence. He had rented the car from New Delhi to tour the country. He said, "I am innocent, I did not do it purposely. The car before me stopped suddenly and had I applied sudden brakes, too, the vehicle behind me would have crashed into me. I had no option, and hence turned my car to the left but ended up hitting the man. I was afraid that people would beat me up so I parked my car and hid in the bushes until the police came," he said.

Vishwajeet Kaingade of Khalapur police said, "We will be taking a call on whether or not he should be penalised after discussions with our superiors and legal experts."

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