Man Clings To Bonnet Of Speeding Maruti Ertiga On Mumbai Highway: Road Rage On Video
Road rage can sometimes go too far. It can even escalate to life-threatening situations and cause serious damage/ inconvenience to the people involved or the public at large. A chilling video from Mumbai shows one such incident. A man can be seen clinging to the bonnet of a speeding Maruti Ertiga.
Reportedly captured at night from the Vile Parle area, the video shows a Maruti Ertiga speeding through the Western Express Highway in Mumbai. It wears Yellow registration plate and is thus a cab. The clip is being filmed from a motorcycle riding parallel to it. We soon discover that a man is clinging to the bonnet of the MPV. He is in fact, balancing his weight against the vehicle's windshield, and is clearly trying hard to hold his position.
As the motorcycle overtakes the MPV, we see the man looking helplessly at it and seeking help. The Ertiga driver, however, continues to accelerate aggressively- clearly a deliberate act.
The man here was caught in a life-and-death struggle. The cabbie pays no attention and continues to accelerate. The entire scene looks like one from an action movie. Some reports say that the MPV continued to drive for six kilometers, with the man still holding onto its bonnet, begging for his life. The people on the motorcycle ask the Ertiga driver to pull over. He finally stopped the vehicle near Jogeshwari.
This video, in fact, would send shivers down your spine! It was soon shared with the police department. Mumbai police acted swiftly and registered a case against the cabbie, identified as Bhim Kumar Mahato. He has been taken into custody for detailed interrogation. The Ertiga involved has also been confiscated.
What Really Happened Here?
As it turns out, the accused cab driver and the victim were involved in a heated argument, sometime before the incident. Eyewitnesses say this to have happened at the parking lot of the domestic airport.
This soon escalated and the cabbie reportedly tried to run over the other guy with the MPV. The man acted quickly and in a desperate attempt to save himself, jumped onto the Ertiga's bonnet. The vehicle continued to speed, forcing the guy to hold on tight. A road rage thus turned into a near-death experience for him.
Police Responds To The Incident
How Mumbai police initiated action against the accused in this case, deserves appreciation. An FIR has been registered at the Airport Police Station, as the incident happened nearby. The accused is reportedly a resident of Vartak Nagar, Thane. He has been booked under Sections 281, 125, 126(2), 115(2), and 352 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 184 of the Motor Vehicles Act. A notice has been issued under Section 35(3) of BNS as well.
Talking to the media about the incident, Mumbai Police reiterated that no one is allowed to break the law. At the time of writing this article, the exact reason behind the altercation between the two men remains unknown.
Some say that the Ertiga was waiting for pickup at the airport, when a private cab driver asked him to leave the place. This reportedly triggered an argument that gradually escalated into a fight. The cabbie was soon joined by his colleagues. Seeing the crowd grow in size, the Ertiga driver started his vehicle and allegedly tried to run him over, finally making the man end up on his vehicle's bonnet. This narrative sounds hard to disbelieve.
Bottomline
People have lately been worried about the increasing instances of road rage and reckless driving behaviour in Mumbai. The new case would only add to these fears.