Cyrus Mistry was not wearing seat belt: Maharashtra Police officials

Tata Sons’ former chairman Cyrus Mistry and his friend Jehangir Pandole yesterday passed away in a road accident. More details regarding the accident are now surfacing online. The accidents accident happened at Palghar, near Mumbai.  Officials of the Maharashtra Police, investigating the car accident, have noted that the both Cyrus Mistry and Jehangir Pandole were not wearing seat belts when the accident happened. The officials add that the car had covered the 20 km distance in just 9 minutes. Covering 20 kms in 9 minutes indicates that the average speed of the car was over 130 Kph, which is way over the speed limit. 

Airbags and seatbelts go hand-in-hand

Airbags are supplemental restraint systems. And in nearly all modern cars, airbags work only when seatbelts are worn. This is because of the fact that airbags use explosives to deploy, and if an airbag hits a passenger who’s not worn a seatbelt, it could end up seriously burning/injuring the passenger. Seatbelts also prevent the passenger from being thrown around in a car during an accident. This is why it’s so important for everyone in the car to wear seatbelts.

Cyrus Mistry and three of his friends were travelling back to Mumbai from Iranshah fire temple in Udvada, Gujarat. Cyrus and his friends had visited the temple as part of their religious ritual. Other than Cyrus Mistry, who was former chairman of Tata Sons, there were Anahita, ex-independent director of Tata Global Beverages, Darius, managing director of JM Financial’s private equity business and Jehangir, who was earlier a director in consulting firm KPMG’s Global Strategy Group in London in the car.

Cyrus Mistry and his friends had left from Udvada after lunch at a friend’s hotel. Superintendent of police, Palghar Balasaheb Patil and officers had visited the spot of accident. According to the information that is currently available, Anahita was behind the wheels. She lost control of the vehicle taking the old bridge over the Surya river. There are two bridges over the river and the car had covered 20 km after Charoti toll.

Police officers who visited the accident spot said that there is a possibility that the driver might have got confused about the bridge. She might have not been sure about which bridge to take. Police will record the statements of the injured victims. Cyrus Mistry was seated behind the co-passenger seat and the Jehangir was behind the driver. Medical superintendent Pradeep Dhodi said both Cyrus and Jehangir were brought in dead. Both of them died of serious head injuries.

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Cyrus and three others were travelling in a Mercedes-Benz SUV and it comes with curtain airbags. This is meant to protect the passengers who are sitting at the rear, in case of an accident. The airbags had opened however, it was too late by then. As Cyrus and Jehangir were not wearing seat belts, there heads had already hit the front seat even before the airbags had opened. Police officers who were inspecting the vehicle confirmed the same. The speed of the vehicle is said to be the cause of accident. There was a slight curve on the road and according to a witness, the driver was attempting to overtake another vehicle from the left.

Anahita and Daruis who survived the accident with injuries and multiple fractures are admitted to hospital. Both of them have suffered fractures to jaw and hip. The Mercedes-Benz GLC luxury SUV looks intact from the rear but, the engine has been completely pushed behind the front wheels. The occupants in the car were rescued by the motorists who were passing by the same route. At this stretch where the accident happened, there are no houses or shops. There were CCTVs installed on the spot where the accident happened.

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Via TOI