Truck driver gets life term for murder in road rage

A court here sentenced a 33-year-old truck driver to life imprisonment on Tuesday for murdering a shopkeeper by running the vehicle over him near a toll plaza in suburban Mulund in May 2023. When both vehicles stopped at the toll plaza, Bhavesh alighted to confront Shah about the damage, it said.

A court here sentenced a 33-year-old truck driver to life imprisonment on Tuesday for murdering a shopkeeper by running the vehicle over him near a toll plaza in suburban Mulund in May 2023. The court declined the prosecution's request for the death penalty, noting that the case did not meet the ''rarest of rare'' criteria as the convict Noor Mohd Shah had no prior criminal record and is the sole breadwinner for his family. Shah was found guilty of offences committed under Indian Penal Code (IPC) section for murder by additional sessions judge S B Dige. The incident occurred on the night of May 11, 2023. As per the prosecution, Bhavesh Ramesh Soni, a utensils shop owner from Bhiwandi in Thane district, was driving towards Mumbai with his uncle when a truck, driven by Shah, allegedly clipped their car. When both vehicles stopped at the toll plaza, Bhavesh alighted to confront Shah about the damage, it said. Witnesses testified that as Bhavesh stood in front of the truck demanding compensation, Shah shouted a threat and intentionally drove the heavy vehicle over him, dragging his body for nearly 20 feet before speeding away. Bhavesh was rushed to a nearby hospital but was declared dead on arrival due to massive head injuries. The defence argued that the truck driver's face was not visible in CCTV footage, but the court relied on footage showing his vehicle's registration number running over the victim. Further two toll plaza employees identified Shah during a test identification parade and again in open court, the order said. In the forensic analysis, paint scrapings from the truck matched the damage on the victim's car. Considering the evidence on record, the court found that Shah acted with the clear intention to kill the victim. ''The accused had knowledge that if the the truck runs over any person, then it is so imminently dangerous that it must, in all probability, cause the death of such person,'' the court held.