New Delhi

The Delhi High Court has refused to grant bail to the alleged car driver in the 2023 Kanjhawala hit-and-drag case in which a woman was killed after being dragged by the vehicle.

Justice Girish Kathpalia said the gravity and the manner in which the murder was allegedly committed dissuaded the court from granting relief to accused Amit Khanna.

Anjali Singh (20) was killed in the early hours of the new year day in 2023 after her scooter was hit by the car, which dragged her for more than 12 km from Sultanpur to Kanjhawala.

"The CCTV footages depict that the offending car was handed over to the accused/applicant to drive and even after hitting the deceased and dragging her body under the car, the accused/applicant continued to drive, after which he stopped and got down, but even after seeking the deceased entangled under the car, he drove further up to 13 km," Justice Kathpalia said in the order passed on Thursday.

"The gravity and manner in which the murder was allegedly committed dissuades me to grant bail. Therefore, the bail application is dismissed," the court concluded.

Khanna sought bail on the ground that he had been in custody since January 1, 2023 without any evidence, and all other co-accused had already been released.

His lawyer submitted that the deceased's pillion rider Nidhi's claim that she could identify the present accused as driver of the offending car came out only in her third statement, which was recorded a week after the incident.

The lawyer emphasised that according to Nidhi's testimony, the deceased was heavily drunk as they were returning from a party.

It was further contended that the CCTV footage does not depict the accused, and till date, the investigating officer has not placed on record the results of 'Facial Recognition System'.

Delhi Police's counsel opposed the bail plea, stating that Khanna was driving the car.

The court examined Nidhi's testimony and observed that although Singh was stated to be drunk at the time of the incident, the statement also stated that even Khanna and other passengers in the offending car were also "heavily drunk".

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In July 2023, a trial court had ordered framing of murder charges against Khanna and three others, after Delhi Police filed an 800-page charge sheet in the case in April.