Ex-Telangana MLA’s son named accused in toddler's death case

Hyderabad, April 17: Hyderabad Police have made Mohammed Raheel Amir alias Sahel, son of former Bodhan MLA Mohammed Shakil Amir, an accused in a 2022 road accident case that had claimed the life of a toddler.

Raheel Amir was arrested last week in another case.

The police have reopened the February 2022 accident case, which occurred on Road Number 45 Jubilee Hills. A two-month-old toddler died after falling from the arms of a woman Kajal Chouhan, when the car, which was allegedly being driven by Raheel hit her while she was crossing the road.

Three persons were injured in the accident that occurred on the night of February 17, 2022.

According to police, the Thar vehicle, with an MLA sticker on it, hit balloon sellers crossing the road. Kajal and other balloon sellers hailed from Maharashtra

Three persons travelling had escaped leaving behind the vehicle. Later, the police arrested Syed Afnan Ahmed, after he surrendered before the police and confessed that he was driving the car. He also told police that Raheel and another friend Mohammed Maaz were seated in the car.

However, after the recent case where Raheel was arrested for allegedly ramming his luxury car into the traffic barricade near Praja Bhavan, the police reopened the earlier case and took up an investigation.

The investigations reportedly found that like in the case relating to the accident near Praja Bhavan, an unrelated person was made to surrender in the 2022 case. It was Raheel who was allegedly driving the vehicle.

The police altered the sections to book a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder against the accused.

The police are also investigating the role of the police officers who probed the case.

Raheel, who was evading arrest since December last year in the Praja Bhavan accident case, was taken into custody at Hyderabad Airport soon after he returned from Dubai on March 8. A court subsequently sent him to judicial custody till April 22.

Raheel returned to Hyderabad three days after the Telangana High Court suspended the lookout circular (LOC) issued against him in connection with the FIR registered in Panjagutta police station in a rash driving case in front of Praja Bhavan on December 24, 2023.

While suspending the LOC, the High Court had directed Saheel to surrender before the investigating officer by April 19.

The youth was driving the BMW car which rammed into the barricades in front of Praja Bhavan. No one was injured but the barricade and the front portion of the car were damaged in the incident. The person driving the car and three others travelling with him escaped leaving behind the car.

Later, a person came to the spot to claim the abandoned car. A case of rash driving was registered against him.

However, subsequent investigation revealed that Raheel, son of the former MLA from Bodhan, was driving the car. The police officers allegedly let off Raheel and booked a person who works as a driver at the former MLA’s house. Raheel escaped to Dubai to join his father, who was already staying there.

A total of 16 people were booked and five were arrested, including inspectors of Panjagutta and Bodhan police stations who helped the accused.

Police had also issued LOC against Shakeel, former MLA of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) from Bodhan constituency in Nizamabad district. The High Court had suspended the LOC against him in February.

The police had said that while being in Dubai, the former MLA allegedly helped his son to come out of police custody and implicated an unrelated person in the case.