MP’s son booked after Aston Martin kills woman in Hyderabad

Dubai: A 21-year-old son of a Rajya Sabha MP has been booked after an Aston Martin he was allegedly driving at high speed struck and killed a 26-year-old retail worker outside Hyderabad’s Inorbit Mall, police said.

Lingamaneni Sanjush, son of Jana Sena Party MP and businessman Lingamaneni Ramesh, was allegedly behind the wheel of the luxury car when it hit Bharathi Mukhi as she was crossing the road in Madhapur on August 16.

Bharathi, who worked at the Lifestyle store in Inorbit Mall, suffered severe head injuries and was rushed to Apollo Hospital in Jubilee Hills, where doctors declared her dead.

Police have served Sanjush with a notice but have not arrested him.

Madhapur Assistant Commissioner of Police Ch Sridhar said the offence registered against him is bailable and carries a maximum punishment of less than seven years.

“As the road accident negligence case punishment is below seven years, it is bailable. There is no arrest in the case. We have served notices to the accused,” Sridhar said.

What happened outside Inorbit Mall?

According to the FIR, Bharathi and her colleague Pooja Ashok Alone, also 26, had gone towards the nearby ITC Kohenur area to collect lunch at around 3pm.

They were returning to work when Bharathi attempted to cross the road opposite Inorbit Mall.

Police allege the Aston Martin, bearing registration number TG-09-G-0666, was being driven at high speed and in a rash and negligent manner when it struck her.

The impact left Bharathi with a severe bleeding injury to her head.

She was taken to Apollo Hospital in the same Aston Martin involved in the crash, according to the FIR, but was declared dead at the hospital.

Her colleague subsequently informed Lifestyle store manager Panjala Ashwin Kumar, who approached police.

Who is Lingamaneni Sanjush?

Sanjush is the son of Lingamaneni Ramesh, a Rajya Sabha member from the Jana Sena Party headed by Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan.

The 21-year-old is listed as a director of two companies operating in the energy and power sectors — Black Ridge Energy Private Limited and Capital Energy Private Limited.

He studied computer science at the University of Texas at Dallas, according to information cited by the Times of India.

The Aston Martin involved in the fatal crash is not registered in Sanjush’s name. Police records cited in the case show that the vehicle is owned by Honor Prime Housing LLP.

Investigators are examining the circumstances in which Sanjush came to be driving the vehicle.

Why hasn't he been arrested?

Police registered a case under Section 106(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which covers causing death by a rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide.

The offence can carry imprisonment of up to five years and a fine.

Police said that because the offence is bailable and the punishment is below seven years, Sanjush has not been arrested and was instead served notices.

ACP Sridhar rejected suggestions of shortcomings in the police handling of the case, saying: “There is no lacuna in police reporting in the case.”

The investigation is continuing into the speed and circumstances of the crash and the sequence of events leading to Bharathi’s death.

Sanjush and his father were contacted for their response, but an email seeking comment remained unanswered, the Times of India reported.