Bandra Hit-and-Run: Megha Rawal Sent to Police Custody in Child's Death

A 45-year-old woman, Megha Rawal, was produced before a court on Monday and remanded to one-day police custody in connection with a fatal hit-and-run that claimed the life of an eight-year-old boy on St John Baptist Road near Jijamata Garden in Bandra West.

The incident occurred between 2:15 pm and 2:30 pm on the stretch leading toward Mount Mary Church. The victim, eight-year-old Ansh Ravindra Gupta, a resident of the nearby Kadeshwar area, had gone to the garden to play. While returning home and crossing the road, he was struck by an Innova Hycross SUV allegedly driven by Rawal.

Following the collision, local residents rushed to the scene. An auto-rickshaw driver transported the severely injured boy to Holy Hospital in Bandra West. Doctors at the hospital declared him dead at approximately 3:45 pm.

Bandra Police reached the location, conducted a panchnama, and registered a case against Rawal under Sections 105, 281, and 125 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), along with Section 184 of the Motor Vehicles Act. The charges include culpable homicide not amounting to murder, rash driving, acts endangering life, and dangerous driving.

Investigators are currently verifying an eyewitness claim alleging that Rawal was using a mobile phone while driving at the time of the crash. Speaking to the Free Press Journal, the child's parents also alleged that Rawal was driving under the influence of alcohol, a claim that remains under investigation by the police.

Rawal is a Mumbai-based entrepreneur, certified health coach, and fitness nutritionist who founded the confectionery brand Mezmo Candy in 2021. Further investigation into the incident is underway.