To avoid toll, man crashes Mumbai Trans- Harbour Link barrier

NAVI MUMBAI: In a first-of-its-kind incident to have occurred on the Mumbai Trans- Harbour Link (MTHL) bridge, a driver crashed his car through a steel toll barrier around midnight on Monday to avoid paying the toll charge of ₹200, damaging the barrier as well as injuring a toll booth employee.
The accused has been identified as 22-year-old Shoaib Ali Khan, who is a resident of Sector 19 in Ulwe and manages his brother-in-law’s transport business. He had travelled to Mumbai for business purposes in a red-coloured Maruti Suzuki Brezza, and on arriving at the Shivaji Nagar toll gate around midnight on his return journey, he realised that he did not have the one-way toll charge of ₹200 for this route.
To avoid paying the toll, he is reported to have stepped on the accelerator and hit the toll barrier, to speed away. When toll employees tried to stop him, one of them got hurt in the process.
“The accused was going back home. He didn’t have the required toll amount, so he decided to break his way through. Two employees at the toll tried to get the car to halt but the accused continued with his rash and negligent driving,” said an investigating officer.
The toll employees eventually managed to stop the vehicle but not before one of them got hurt in the chase. Aadesh Deshmukh, 24, was injured in the chase and had to seek medical aid. After the accused was apprehended, he was handed over to the police.
The red Maruti Brezza that the accused drove is registered in the name of his brother-in-law, Saddam Sirajul Hussain. Nhava Sheva Police have registered a case under Sections 281 (rash and negligent driving), 125 and 125(A) (endangering human life) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and relevant sections of the Motor Vehicle Act against the accused.