Director Victor booked for murder after drunk driving rampage kills elderly man in Thakurpukur

Filmmaker Siddhanta Das, also known as Victor, has been booked for murder after allegedly running over and killing an elderly pedestrian in Thakurpukur while driving under the influence. The incident occurred on the morning of April 6. Initially, police registered a case under IPC Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder). Following the autopsy report and CCTV footage analysis, the charges were upgraded to Section 302 (murder). Victor is currently in judicial custody until April 30 as per the order of the Alipore court on April 16.

According to police sources, Victor was under the influence of a substance called Submarino from the late hours of April 5 until the following morning. He admitted during interrogation that he could not distinguish between day and night due to the level of intoxication. Believing the road would be empty as it usually is during his late-night drives, he entered the Thakurpukur market area in his car. He claimed he regularly drove through the area at night, sometimes around 2 or 3 a.m., and used it as a shortcut when the road was deserted.

On the day of the incident, Victor allegedly struck a scooter first, triggering panic in the market. Despite onlookers shouting at him to stop, he continued driving. Witnesses reported that he hit multiple pedestrians and makeshift stalls, covering approximately 120 metres before running over an elderly man who was drinking tea at a roadside shop. The vehicle dragged the man under its wheels for nearly 30 metres, according to eyewitnesses and the post-mortem report.

During police questioning, Victor reportedly said the road was familiar to him and he had never faced issues while speeding through it late at night. He told investigators, “I thought the road would be empty as usual.” However, despite hitting people and being urged to stop, he allegedly did not respond. CCTV footage has reportedly captured the sequence of events, which police are using as evidence to support the murder charge.

Police have highlighted two legal aspects in this case—knowledge and intention. They stated that Victor’s decision to continue driving despite visible chaos and warnings from pedestrians showed knowledge of the consequences. Investigators said that had he stopped after the initial collision, the fatality could have been avoided. Based on these findings, Kolkata Police decided to reclassify the case as murder following the preliminary forensic and post-mortem results.