It is official now.
Nadia Khan, assistant director to Kaizad Gustaad of the Boom fame, died in a rail accident during the shooting of the film Mumbai Central near the Mahalaxmi railway station on May 25.
The railway police will now investigate the case.
The controversy started when the police found that Nadia didn't die in a road accident, as stated in a complaint registered at the Worli police station on May 25 by Ashish Udeshi, a member of the film unit (The case was first registered at Worli, but on May 26 it was transferred to Tardeo police station, because the accident spot falls under the latter's jurisdiction).
In fact, Gustaad and Udeshi told the girl's mother, who is in Britain, that she died in a road accident and took her clearance to transfer the dead body to that country.
Joint Commissioner of Police, Law and Order, Ahmad Javed told rediff.com: "It was an accident case, which falls under section 304 (A) [causing death due to negligence]. And now we get to know that it was not a road accident, but a train accident. So we are handing the case to the railway police."
A police source at Tardeo said, "Gustaad has accepted that Nadia died in a train accident, and his unit members rushed her to hospital. Out of fear and haste they registered a case of road accident at Worli."
"Right now police is investigating the case. Let them do that. I will give you details later," Gustaad said.
Western Railway chief PRO Shailendra Kumar said, "The railways had granted permission to Gustaad to shoot his film at Mahalaxmi and Lower Parel stations after 11.30 am, for some period of time, from May 25 to May 29. On May 25, at 12.35 pm, they informed our office that they were cancelling their shooting due to some technical reason."
Kumar got to know about the accident through newspapers because the film unit didn't registered accident any complaint with the railway police.
The railway authorities granted permission to shoot the film following a Rs 5 crore insurance, Rs 5 lakh bank guaranty and Rs 65,000 in cash.
When rediff.com asked Javed what action would be taken against Udeshi and Gustaad, he said, "These thing will be clear after the investigation."
"After transferring the case to the railway police, top police officials will discuss the issue and decide whether to register a case of false complain against Ashish Udeshi," the police source said.
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