June 21: Two of actor Vikram Chatterjee's friends who were partying with him, model Sonika Singh Chauhan and others hours before the fatal crash got their statements recorded before a magistrate today.

Sources said both told the magistrate of Alipore court that Vikram had consumed alcohol more than once that night.

The actor was driving Sonika home in his Toyota Corolla Altis around 3.30am on April 29 when the car crashed on Rashbehari Avenue, leaving the model fatally injured.

Vikram, Sonika and others had partied at multiple venues the same night.

The police had yesterday filed a prayer in the court to get the two friends of Vikram record their statements under Section 164 of the CrPC. The permission was granted.

A statement recorded in the presence of a magistrate under Section 164 is admissible in court as evidence.

One of the two who deposed is an actor and the other works in a private firm in Salt Lake Sector V. Both have earlier deposed before the police.

"Both said in their statements before the magistrate that Vikram had consumed liquor on the night of the accident. One of them said Vikram had at least two drinks in two nightclubs and left his third unfinished," a source who refused to be identified said.

Till now the police have failed to gather any medical evidence to prove charges of drink driving against Vikram and are banking on statements of witnesses who had partied with him before the fatal crash to prove their case.

Earlier, four of Sonika's friends have got their statements recorded before a magistrate in the Alipore court and reportedly testified that they had seen Vikram drink at more than one places that night.

On the night of the accident, the police had allegedly not conducted alcohol test on Vikram. Instead, the police requisitioned his blood sample from Ruby hospital, where the actor was admitted, four days after the crash.

The state forensic sciences laboratory in Belgachhia, where the sample was sent, said the amount of blood was too little to conduct the test.

Vikram had surrendered before the chief judicial magistrate in the Alipore court on May 5 and was immediately granted bail.

He later moved the high court seeking anticipatory bail after the police charged him with culpable homicide not amounting to murder, dropping the charge of death due to negligence.