Here Is Why An FIR Has Been Filed Against Anand Mahindra Over A 2022 Road Accident Death

Mahindra & Mahindra, the makers of the Scorpio SUV, has issued a clarification after an FIR was filed against 13 people, including the company's chairman Anand Mahindra, in connection with a road accident death that happened in January 2022.

The FIR was filed in the Raipurwa police station in Kanpur on the complaint of one Rajesh Mishra, whose son died in a road accident on January 14, 2022.

BCCL

Why FIR against Anand Mahindra

According to the complaint, Dr Apoorv Mishra was returning from Kanpur to Lucknow on his Scorpio SUV, which was gifted by his father, when he met with a fatal road accident.

In his complaint, Mishra alleged that his son and his two co-passengers were wearing seatbelts at the time of the crash, but the airbags did not function.

According to Mishra, he bought a Black Mahindra Scorpio SUV for Rs 17.39 lakh on December 2, 2020, for his only son after he was convinced about its security features based on advertisements and posts on social media by Anand Mahindra.

Brilliant¡­ pic.twitter.com/aDYsKOyNaP

¡ª anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) April 15, 2022

He claimed that despite the promise in the ads, there were no airbags on his son's SUV, which resulted in his death.

What are the charges?

The 13 accused named in the FIR, including Anand Mahindra and the dealership owner, have been booked under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including Section 420 (cheating), 287 (negligent conduct with respect to machinery), 304-A (causing death by negligence), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 102-B (criminal intimidation).

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How Mahindra responded

Following the FIR, Mahindra & Mahindra, in a statement, said that the allegation of the vehicle not having airbags is false.

"We would hence like to categorically reconfirm that the Scorpio S9 variant manufactured in 2020 did have airbags. We have investigated, and there was no malfunction of the airbags. It was a rollover case which would not deploy the frontal airbags," a press statement said.

Here is our official statement with reference to an incident involving the Scorpio. We have also issued a Press Statement last night. pic.twitter.com/8JvXwi48k3

¡ª Mahindra Automotive (@Mahindra_Auto) September 27, 2023

"The matter is currently sub judice, and we are committed to cooperating with the authorities for any further investigation that is required. We completely empathise with the family and offer our deepest condolences to them in their grief," the statement added.

Government not making six airbags mandatory

Earlier this month, Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari had said that the government will not make six airbags mandatory for cars.

Last year, the government proposed to make six airbags mandatory for cars from October 2023 to enhance the safety of motor vehicle occupants; it has been decided to enhance safety features by amending the Central Motors Vehicles Rules (CMVR), 1989.

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