The motorist was arrested after being traced to Naupada in Thane through CCTV footage
This picture has been used for representation purpose only
A drunk businessman and his friend sped away in their car dragging the alcometer and a traffic constable holding it for 100 metres. When the constable told the driver he would die if he did not stop the car, the driver punched him on the arm causing the constable to fall off the running car on the busy road.
The incident took place on Monday night near Mulund toll plaza where the traffic constable Balaji Doiphode, attached to Vikhroli traffic division, was deployed to catch drunk drivers.
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"I was standing with our team in the Thane-Mumbai lane near Mulund toll Naka. After checking a few motorists, I suspected a motorist to be in an inebriated state. I stopped the car and asked the driver to blow into the alcometer. As the test was positive, I asked him to show his driving licence and vehicle documents," Doiphode recalled while speaking to mid-day.
"The driver told his friend who was seated next to him to hand him the licence kept on the rear seat. Before the friend could get off the car, the driver accelerated and in the jolt, I lost my grip over the alcometer. My hand was stuck in the car door and I got dragged for about 100 metres before he hit my hand and I fell on the road," he added.
A motorcyclist, who saw Doiphode being dragged, stopped to pick him up and rushed him to Veer Savarkar hospital where he was given immediate medical attention. Meanwhile, a team from Navghar police station reached the hospital and registered an FIR after recording his statement.
The constable has received several injuries on his body. Sources at the police station told mid-day that the car was traced after scanning multiple footages of CCTV cameras on the route the 'drunk' driver had taken after the incident. "We tracked him down to Naupada in Thane," the officer said.
Senior inspector of Navghar police station Pushkraj Suryavanshi said, "We have arrested Prathamesh Maharao, 25, and recovered the alcometer from his car. We have arrested him from Thane. The car, too, has been seized."
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