Jun 16 2015 : The Times of India (Mumbai) Court allows family of victim to oppose drunk lawyer's bail  Swati Deshpande & Ahmed Ali Mumbai:  TNN    Corporate lawyer Janhavi Gadkar's bail hear ng in the drunk driving case was pushed to Wednesday af er a lawyer engaged by a vic im's family intervened to oppose the relief. The court also sought her medical report from prison by that day .Janhavi is charged with slamming her Audi SUV into a taxi, killing driver Sayyed Hussain, 57, and Salim Sabuwala, 50, while speeding aga nst the traffic. Her blood alcohol content was several times over the legal limit, said a preliminary report. Janhavi, lodged in Bycul a jail till June 26, was not present in court. When her case was taken up around 3.30pm on Monday , Shubada Khot, a lawyer hired by the Sabuwalas, applied to be heard as intervenor and opposed the bail plea. Janhavi's awyer Mahesh Sabnis resis ed Khot's move but was overruled by the magistrate. He later agreed for Wednesday as Janhavi's medical reports would be in. An intervention plea is not uncommon and a lawyer for a victim can assist the public prosecutor with the court's permission. The Sabuwalas made it clear they did not doubt the police or prosecu tor, but wanted their lawyer to act as a force multiplier to strengthen the case. The police also opposed the bail plea, claiming Janhavi could tamper with evidence and influence witnesses, and added that it cannot be ruled out that she would not commit a similar offence again if released. They also noted that bail must be denied since the trial will go to a sessions court. Janhavi's bail plea filed by lawyer on record Mustafa Kaachwala said her offence “cannot be elevated to that of culpable homicide not amounting to murder'', an offence that attracts up to 10 years' rigorous imprisonment for committing an act with “knowledge'' that it would cause someone's death. An “overzealous police“ applied the section “mechanically'', and at best the offence attributable to Janhavi could be that of rash and negligent driving which is punishable with two years in jail. “The facts were blown out of proportion in the complaint,“ her bail plea says, recounting briefly the police case of her ramming into a taxi carrying a family of five returning after a celebratory dinner in Bhiwandi. The defence argued that ingredients of “having knowledge'' to make out a culpable homicide case are lacking.Since the police have invoked provisions against drunk and rash driving, the graver section of culpable homicide was not necessary , it argued. Jahnavi's mother Sudha, a former legal manager at BEST, and Janhavi's estranged husband, Rahul Sarela, also a lawyer, were present in court, as were relatives and friends of the Sabuwalas. The watching lawyer for RIL, where Janhavi works as vice-president (legal), was also there. When Sabnis challenged Khot's right to intervene, she quoted two judgments--one by the Supreme Court and one by the Bombay high court (both mentioned by TOI in its Sunday edition) -which gave victims in criminal cases a right to be heard with the permission of the court in certain cases. The Bombay HC had said in a case that “even when an application for anticipatory bail is considered, the police may not place all factual details before the court as investigation in most of such cases is at a preliminary stage. Therefore, some role can be played by the complainant by pointing out factual aspects“. The SC had said “the role of a private person who is aggrieved by an offence is not altogether wiped out...'' in a criminal prosecution, read out Khot. Sabnis said these judgments would not apply to Janhavi's case since it was in a preliminary stage and not at trial, with no chargesheet filed yet. But magistrate Richa Khedekar allowed the intervention plea. Khot's senior Niteen Pradhan will appear on Wednesday . Khedekar also allowed Sabnis' plea that Janhavi's medical records be sought by the court. Sabnis submitted that Janhavi ought to be taken to JJ hospital or some other government hospital for a proper check-up, including an X-ray as her left fractured hand is still in pain and she must receive proper treatment in time. A team of private doctors that Janhavi's family has spoken to has advised that proper medical assessment is essential to prevent any permanent deformity or incorrect healing of the hand, he added. Tracking lawyer, intervenor add to courtroom drama Janhavi Gadkar's case is notable for the sheer number of lawyers involved in it, reports Swati Deshpande. Reliance Industries, the company where she works, has deployed a watching counsel. The young lawyer was seen on Monday standing right behind Janhavi's counsel Mahesh Sabnis as he argued against an intervention by the victims. Niteen Pradhan and his team have been employed by the Sabuwala family to oppose her bail plea. Subhada Khot appeared for them on Monday. Also in court on Monday was MLA and advocate Waris Pathan with his two armed securitymen. He is pushing for the case to be fast-tracked and is watching the case independently on behalf of the victims. Cops keep building pile of evidence Byculla MLA Waris Pathan on Monday met police commissioner Rakesh Maria, pleading for the Janhavi Gadkar drunk driving case to be put in a fast-track court and appointment of a special public prosecutor, reports S Ahmed Ali.In an attempt to build a water-tight case, the police are awaiting a joint report from RTO officials and Audi experts, giving the cause of the accident and clarifying whether the vehicles were in fit condition. Cops are trying to pre-empt a defence bid to blame technical snag for the accident.“The RTO and Audi experts have carried out joint surveys and are analysing the accident. It appears both vehicles were new; the Audi had undergone only its first service. The report, expected in a day or two, will help us,“ said a police official.The cops are also waiting to record the statement of a couple who saw Janhavi near Shivaji Chowk circle in Chembur where she apparently got confused and drove back on to the Eastern Freeway. This theory about how she landed on the wrong lane says she crossed the Panjarpol tunnel and realized she was driving back to south Mumbai. She took an illegal U-turn and rammed into the taxi. They have sought a date from a magistrate to record the statements of eight witnesses, including the Reliance CFO with whom Janhavi went to a pub on Monday night.