Ad filmmaker Elias Kazmi critical after road accident; teen driver sent to juvenile home

JAMMU: Three days after ad filmmaker Elias Kazmi (58) was critically injured on being hit and dragged by an SUV in Jammu’s Bhatindi area on September 19, he remained on ventilator support at the intensive care unit of the emergency wing in Jammu government medical college and hospital, battling for life. The 16-year-old son of a deputy SP of J&K Police, who had been driving the Mahindra Thar that hit Kazmi, was later detained and sent to a juvenile home.
Kazmi, Director-Production at Turner International Media, was riding a scooter when the SUV collided with his two-wheeler. “When Elias got down to advice the minor, he quickly pulled the windows up and zoomed away. That resulted in his hand getting stuck and was dragged along the car at high speed for a distance! Elias today is critical with 2 brain clots, broken ribs and fractures (sic),” Karnataka Congress spokesperson Aga Sultan Murthuza wrote on his Facebook page.
After the accident, Kazmi’s brother Ajaz submitted a written complaint to Bhatindi police post, following which cops registered a case, initiated a probe, and seized both vehicles involved in the collision. “The accused, identified as Hayan Ali, son of Tahir Hussain from Hamza Colony, later surrendered and was detained. During investigation, it came to the fore that the accused was a minor and police remand was sought from the Juvenile Justice Board which was granted for six days,” said a cop.
Investigators were scrutinising CCTV footage from different locations, said Jammu SSP Chandan Kohli adding that the minor was sent to a juvenile home while statements of the complainant and witnesses had been collected. “As per doctors treating the injured, the victim is not stable and his statement could not be recorded,” the SSP added.