Pune, 2nd July 2025: In the Kalyaninagar Porsche crash case, the defence has argued that sections related to fabrication of evidence and forgery of important documents or electronic records should not apply to Dr. Ajay Tawre, former head of the forensic medicine department at Sassoon Hospital. According to the defence, Dr. Tawre was not present when the minor accused was brought for a medical examination, and hence, cannot be held liable under those charges.
The police had earlier alleged that blood samples of the minor accused and his friends were deliberately swapped at Sassoon Hospital to destroy evidence. The charge framing process against the ten accused began in the Pune Sessions Court on Friday (June 27). Special Public Prosecutor Shishir Hire presented the case details in court, while Adv. Sudhir Shah represented Dr. Tawre and made submissions regarding the charges.
The accident took place shortly after midnight on May 18, when a speeding Porsche crashed into a two-wheeler in Kalyaninagar, killing two young IT engineers. The car was allegedly being driven by a minor, accompanied by two underage friends. Their blood samples were sent to Sassoon Hospital for testing, but the police claim the samples were tampered with to shield the accused.
According to the investigation, the minor's parents, Vishal and Shivani Agarwal, along with Arun Kumar Singh, allegedly conspired with Ashpak Makandar, Amar Gaikwad, Aditya Sood, Ashish Mittal, and hospital staffer Atul Ghatkamble to swap the samples. Dr. Ajay Tawre and Dr. Shrihari Halnor, then Emergency Medical Officer, were also found to be involved during the investigation.
Adv. Shah further argued that there is no evidence of criminal conspiracy against Dr. Tawre and hence conspiracy charges also should not apply to him. Defence lawyers for the remaining accused requested additional time to present their arguments. The court has now scheduled the next hearing for July 8.
Meanwhile, accused Ashpak Makandar has filed a discharge application, while Ashish Mittal has submitted a separate application seeking relevant documents.