Thrissur: The Crime Branch team probing the death of noted violinist Balabhaskar could not take the statements of his driver Arjun as he has reportedly left the state. It is suspected that he has reached Assam. The long trip undertaken by a person who was injured in the accident has added to the mystery shrouding the whole incident.
The team that went to Thrissur to take his statements the other day could not find him.
Arjun was travelling with Balabhaskar’s family when the fatal crash that claimed the lives of the violinist and his daughter occurred in the wee hours of September 25, 2018. They were heading back to Thiruvananthapuram from Thrissur then.
Arjun had suffered injuries in the accident.
Initially, the police had received statements that confirmed Arjun was driving the car at the time of the accident. Balabhaskar's wife Lakshmi too had claimed that Arjun was driving the car, while Arjun said the violinist was at the wheel.
Lakshmi, who suffered grievous injuries, recovered after a long treatment.
Speeding car
Meanwhile, the police have found that Balabhaskar's car was speeding on the accident day. The car was caught on a speed camera at Chalakudy in Thrissur district at 1:08am. It reached Pallipuram in Thiruvananthapuram by 3:45am. The car took only 2.37 hours to cover a distance of 231 km. These were revealed during the probe led by DySP K Harikrishnan.
The probe into Balabhaskar's death intensified after his former programme coordinator Prakashan Thamby was arrested for gold smuggling. Several people, including Balabhaskar's father K C Unni, had alleged that the smuggling gang was linked to the violinist’s death.
Palakkad doc’s claims false: Balabhaskar’s father
More allegations have been raised against an ayurvedic doctor in Palakkad, who was an acquaintance of Balabhaskar.
Balabhaskar's father Unni alleged that that the claims made by the doctor and his wife were not true. Unni even said he feared that the woman, who also ran the ayurvedic centre, might harm Balabhaskar's wife Lakshmi. He had also filed a complaint to the police in this regard.
“I had objected to the woman's visits to the Balabhaskar's house at Poojappura even after his death. I also warned Lakshmi against this. That's when she stopped coming,” Unni said.
