Police on Thursday arrested Shivam Mishra, son of local tobacco baron K K Mishra, in the high-profile Lamborghini crash on VIP Road that injured several people earlier this week, the police chief said.
The arrest came a day after another man approached a local court claiming he was driving the luxury car at the time of the incident and sought to surrender. The court, however, rejected the plea after police reiterated that evidence showed Mishra was at the wheel.
"He (Mishra) has been arrested and will be presented before the court," Commissioner of Police Raghubir Lal told PTI on Thursday morning.
An official said Mishra was taken into custody from a hospital in Delhi, where he was undergoing treatment for an alleged medical condition, as claimed by his family. The 35-year-old was then taken to Kanpur to be produced before a court, the official added.
The crash occurred around 3 pm on Sunday when a Lamborghini Revuelto, an Italian luxury sports car valued at over Rs 10 crore, rammed into pedestrians and vehicles in the upscale Gwaltoli area.
An 18-year-old e-rickshaw driver, Mohd Taufeeq, who was injured in the incident, lodged a complaint. However, the accused’s counsel later claimed that Taufeeq was not keen on pursuing the case.
Police said their preliminary investigation, based on CCTV footage and eyewitness accounts, indicated the car was speeding before the collision. Videos circulating on social media purportedly show private security personnel pulling a man believed to be Mishra out of the driver’s seat after the crash and taking him away in another SUV.
Initially, the FIR named an “unidentified driver” as the accused, but was later amended to include Shivam Mishra after preliminary evidence emerged. On Wednesday, a local court rejected the surrender application of Mohan Lal, who claimed he was driving the car, noting that his name did not figure in the FIR and that evidence pointed to Mishra as the driver.
While police have stood by their findings, Mishra’s father and his counsel have maintained that he was not driving at the time of the accident. They claimed a hired driver was behind the wheel and that Mishra suffered a medical episode during the ride, which they said could have contributed to the mishap. Mishra’s father also alleged the car had developed a technical fault before the crash.
Officials said these claims would be examined as part of the ongoing investigation, including possible medical and forensic evaluations. The case has triggered widespread public scrutiny nationwide, with social media users alleging preferential treatment and delayed action by law enforcement.
