EV Trial Accident: Pravaig Dynamics Seeks New FIR

New Delhi, Jan 10 (PTI) Bengaluru-based electric vehicle startup Pravaig Dynamics, whose trial EV was involved in an accident that the driver claimed was due to speeding and overloading, has sought registration of a fresh FIR saying the one registered by Uttarakhand police ignored critical facts.

Two forest rangers died and a woman warden went missing after their trial EV met with an accident in Uttarakhand's Rajaji Tiger Reserve. Five others on the vehicle were admitted to hospital with injuries.

Uttarakhand police on Wednesday registered an FIR, which the firm in a statement said overlooks critical facts, including trial being authorised by the forest department, and that forest department officials overloaded the trial EV and took it off the approved boundary for trial runs.

The driver separately stated that forest officials forced him to overload and speed up during the trial of the all-terrain electric SUV.

While driver Ashbin Biju is a BE Mechanical Engineer, the first test drive, approved by the forest department of Uttarakhand, took place on Monday morning without any incident, the statement said.

In the second round of demonstration in the afternoon, forest officials forced him to take nine personnel (a total of 10, including the driver) against the seating capacity of eight (including driver), according to his statement.

The firm said the demonstration vehicle was duly authorised by the state forest department for the test drive only within the Rajaji National Park.

"That permission did not allow forest department officials to violate the authorised capacity of our demonstration vehicles (of 8 pax). The forest officials were not allowed to instruct our test driver to trespass speed limits," the statement said.

"Forest personnel (some in uniform) not only forced our test driver Ashbin Biju (BE Mechanical), to violate the boundary conditions, some of them chose to perch dangerously on the back bumper of our demonstration car and overloaded it, forcing it to go off balance."

These material facts, it said, are not being included in the FIR.

"We request that under law and principles of natural justice, Uttarakhand Police records a fresh FIR with all the relevant facts," the statement said.