Paytm’s Vijay Shekhar Sharma arrested for rash driving, released on bail: Report

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, founder and CEO of fintech unicorn and publicly listed Paytm, was arrested last month over allegedly hitting the car of the DCP (South district) in Delhi last month. He was granted bail in the incident.

First reported by the Indian Express, Sharma was arrested and released on bail under IPC Section 279 (rash or negligent driving) last month by the Delhi Police. Delhi Police spokesperson Suman Nalwa confirmed that they had “arrested Sharma, and released him on bail.”

According to an FIR filed regarding the case, a Jaguar Land Rover, allegedly driven by Sharma, hit the vehicle of DCP (South) Benita Mary Jaiker on February 22, outside the Mother's International School in Aurobindo Marg, Delhi.

The car was driven by Constable Dipak Kumar at the time, who had been posted at the location by the DCP and had taken the vehicle to a petrol pump.

According to Kumar, he was at the wheel of the car waiting for a colleague to clear traffic in the area, when the Land Rover came speeding by and rammed his vehicle. The driver of the car did not stop, but Constable Kumar was able to get a look at him as well as the license number of the offending vehicle.

In the FIR, Constable Kumar said that he "can identify the driver."

The car was traced through the transportation department to a company registered in Gurugram, who then informed them that it was given to Sharma for his use. The FIR was registered at Delhi's Malviya Nagar station, where Sharma was arrested and released on bail last month.

Paytm has responded by saying that media reports of Sharma's arrest are exaggerated, and that no one was hurt in the incident.

A spokesperson said, "A complaint was filed in connection with an alleged minor motor vehicle incident. There was no harm caused to any person or property in the said incident. Media reports claiming the nature of the arrest are exaggerated, as even the complaint against the vehicle was for a minor offense under a bailable provision of law and requisite legal formalities were completed on the same day."

This article was updated to reflect Paytm's response.