Gondal Taluka police in Gujarat’s Rajkot district have initiated proceedings against a 26-year-old man who allegedly set his overturned car on fire in an attempt to secure an insurance payout, as per a TOI report. Police said the vehicle had initially been believed to have caught fire accidentally, but an investigation later indicated that petrol had been used to deliberately ignite it.
According to police, Deep Virdiya, a resident of Patidad village, was travelling from Gondal to Patidad on September 4 when he lost control of his car while taking a turn near the village, as reported by TOI. The vehicle went off the road and overturned in a ditch. Virdiya was not injured and was assisted out of the car by local residents.
Car catches fire hours after accident
Police said Virdiya allegedly returned to the accident site at around 11pm along with two other people. Soon afterwards, smoke was spotted coming from the vehicle, following which the fire department was informed.
Firefighters reached the location and brought the blaze under control. The damage to the vehicle was initially estimated at around Rs 7 lakh, and the fire was believed to have resulted from a short circuit.
However, subsequent police inquiries raised questions about how the blaze had started.
Police find petrol had been poured on vehicle
Investigators allegedly found evidence that petrol had been brought to the location, poured over the damaged car and then set alight. Police further said the fuel had been obtained from a cement factory near Patidad.
Based on the investigation, police suspect the fire was intentionally started to make the damage appear accidental and support an insurance claim.
Virdiya also allegedly told police that the vehicle had caught fire because of a short circuit. Investigators have described this as false information given during the inquiry.
Case registered under BNS sections
Police booked Virdiya under Sections 326(F), 318(4) and 240 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The sections cited by police are related to causing grievous hurt with a weapon, cheating to obtain property and providing false information to a public servant, respectively.
The proceedings follow the police investigation into the circumstances surrounding the vehicle fire and the alleged attempt to use the incident for an insurance claim.
