Mumbai: Foram Ruparel (25), the driver of the Audi A6 that was hit by the speeding Aston Martin Rapid on the night of December 8, has refuted claims that her new car, an upgraded Audi A6, was given to her as compensation by the Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance.
While speaking to this newspaper, she claimed that her insurance company gave her the car as a replacement as her earlier vehicle was declared a “total loss.”
“My car could not have undergone repairs as it was declared a total loss by the insurance company and its surveyors. They therefore gave me the insurance money to which I added some amount from my own pocket and brought an Audi A6 as I anyway had wanted to buy a higher version.
The rumours about the car being a compensation from Reliance in return for going soft on the case and withdrawing the complaint are outrageous. Some people have also claimed that three persons were killed in the accident which is absolutely daft,” she said. She, however, refused to divulge the name of the insurance company.
A newspaper report on Thursday had photographed the new Audi A6 given to Foram and a Skoda Superb given to Vikram Mishra, whose Hyundai Elantra too had been severely damaged his in the accident.
The accident occurred on December 8 when the Aston Martin collided with an Audi and an Elantra on Pedder Road injuring three people.
Foram’s father Tushar Ruparel refused to comment on the issue. However, according to sources close to the family, the new vehicle has been gifted by Reliance itself. “Reliance officials have been in touch with the family and offered them an upgraded car.
In return they asked for a complete stoppage of interaction with the press and submitting an application in the court for withdrawing the complaint,” said the source.
Foram’s claims are suspicious considering the fact that she recently gave a contradictory statement to the magistrate where she said the “driver” of the Aston Martin looked like Bansilal Joshi — the elderly person who surrendered himself before the police a day after the incident. She had earlier claimed in her statement to the police that the person who was whisked away by the security detail looked different.
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