BMW Crash: No Legal Provision To Share CCTV Footage With Accused, Says Court

Court Rules Against Sharing CCTV Footage with BMW Crash Accused

The hearing will resume on September 19. (File)

New Delhi:

A Delhi court declared on Thursday that no legal provision exists that would permit the sharing of CCTV footage with an accused in a criminal case.

Judicial magistrate Ankit Garg was presiding over a plea filed for the preservation of CCTV footage by Gaganpreet Kaur, 38, who allegedly drove the BMW that crashed into a two-wheeler carrying a senior finance ministry official, resulting in his death and causing severe injuries to his wife in the Dhaula Kuan area of the capital.

Advocate Gagan Bhatnagar, representing Kaur, referenced sections of the FIR regarding the event sequence and contended that the entire case depended on the CCTV footage.

Bhatnagar argued that footage from Dhaula Kuan metro pillars 65 and 67 needed examination, suggesting it could reveal "something else".

However, the magistrate stated that no legal provision or law existed under which the footage could be provided to the accused.

"I'm not requesting to receive it personally but to preserve it and submit it to the court," responded Kaur's counsel.

He alleged that the investigating officer (IO) gave an "evasive reply" regarding the plea, stating that notice had been issued to the relevant person to provide the footage to Delhi Police.

Bhatnagar claimed that senior police officials had stated they watched the footage, which contradicted the IO's response.

The court ordered the IO to appear on September 19 and issued a notice to the station house officer of Dhaula Kuan police station.

The hearing will continue on September 19.

Kaur remains in judicial custody until September 27, with her bail plea scheduled for September 20.

Navjot Singh, 52, Deputy Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs and resident of Hari Nagar, died from injuries sustained on Ring Road near the Delhi Cantonment Metro station on September 14 afternoon.

Singh and his wife were returning home after visiting the Bangla Sahib Gurdwara.

A case was registered under Sections 281 (rash driving), 125B (endangering life or personal safety of others), 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 238 (causing disappearance of evidence) of the BNS.