BMW case: HC allows cross examination

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday upheld trial court's order summoning Sunil Kulkarni, an eyewitness in the BMW hit-and-run case, and allowed his cross examination.

"There is no infirmity in the trial court's order and the court shall allow his cross examination. Parties of this case are to appear before the trial court," Justice S Ravinder Bhatt said.

The court had on Monday reserved for Tuesday its verdict on Sanjeev Nanda, prime accused in the BMW hit-and-run case, challenging the trial court order which had summoned an eye-witness Sunil Kulkarni for deposition.

Kulkarni had identified Nanda during a court hearing on May 17 as one of the travellers in the BMW.

Nanda had approached the Court after the trial court on March 19 had allowed two applications filed by the prosecution, seeking court's permission to take Nanda's blood sample and to summon Kulkarni for testimony.

Kulkarni was dropped on September 30, 1999, by the prosecution from being examined after two other eye-witnesses Manoj Mallik and Hari Shankar turned hostile in the case.

Nanda, grandson of former Navy chief SM Nanda, along with three others had allegedly killed six people including three police personnel, near Lodhi Hotel on January 10, 1999.

The prosecution alleged that Nanda, who was driving, was in an inebriated state along with his friends Manik Kapoor and Siddharth Gupta at the time of the accident.