New Delhi: The Porsche Taycan involved in last weekend's fatal car crash in Pune, in which two tech professionals were killed, had reportedly been operating without a number plate for months.
The luxury sports car, valued at Rs 2.5 crore, had its registration pending due to the owner's failure to pay the fees of Rs 1,758, according to Maharashtra transport officials.
Maharashtra Transport Commissioner Vivek Bhimanwar told PTI that the electric Porsche car, imported by a dealer in Bengaluru in March, was sent to the state after receiving a temporary registration.
"It was found that a certain registration fee was not paid and the owner was asked to pay the amount for completion of the procedure. However, the vehicle was not brought to the Regional Transport Office (RTO) for the registration process after that," he said.
Officials said it was the owner's responsibility to register the vehicle. In Maharashtra, electric vehicles are exempt from road tax, so the registration fee for this Porsche Taycan amounted to Rs 1,758, covering Rs 1,500 in hypothecation fees, Rs 200 for the smart-card RC (registration certificate), and Rs 58 in postal charges, an NDTV report said. Hypothecation is an insurance term that refers to an arrangement where a vehicle is pledged as collateral for the loan taken for its purchase.
Porsche Speeding At 200 Kmph
The car was being driven by the teenage son of a prominent Pune realtor, who has been arrested. The teen was released on bail within 15 hours, which has kicked up a massive row over reports that his bail conditions included writing a 300-word essay on road accidents. The owners of two bars that served alcohol to the minor before he struck the two victims have been arrested as well.
The accident occurred in the early hours of Sunday morning in Pune's Kalyani Nagar area. Witnesses reported that the Porsche, believed to be traveling at over 200 km per hour, struck a bike carrying two 24-year-old tech professionals returning home from a party.
One of them, Ashwini Koshta, was thrown about 20 feet into the air, and died on the spot, while the other, Aneesh Awadhiya, was hurled into a parked car.