A late-night drive turned into a near-death ordeal for a 28-year-old man after his speeding Ertiga tore through the railing of the Worli Coastal Road and plunged into the Arabian Sea on Monday. The vehicle sank rapidly, but the man was pulled out alive by a team of alert Maharashtra Security Force (MSF) jawans, who risked their lives to save him.
The driver, identified as Frashogor Darayush Battiwala, a Mumbai resident, was allegedly drunk at the time of the accident. He has been booked under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Motor Vehicles Act for rash and negligent driving, endangering public life, and damaging government property.
The rescued driver, Frashogor Darayush Battiwala, moments after being brought to shore (right) Police and MSF jawans after pulling the driver out of the Arabian Sea at Worli Coastal Road. Pics/By Special Arrangement
According to MSF jawan Suhas Kadusare, the first to dive into the sea, “We saw the car crash through the Coastal Road railing and fall straight into the water. A man came up from the submerged vehicle but was struggling — he couldn’t swim. I knew he’d drown if no one acted immediately, so I jumped in.”
Kadusare, along with fellow jawans Pandurang Kale, Vikas Rathod, Ramraje Chaudhary, and Akash Takate, was stationed near Bindumadhav Chowk at Worli Sea Face under the supervision of Assistant Security Officer Hirichandra Vishe. Around 10.50 pm, they heard a loud crash from the Coastal Road’s northbound lane and rushed toward the sound.
They found the Ertiga submerged, having smashed through the roadside barricades. The driver had surfaced but was sinking again. Kadusare jumped in first, followed by Kale and Rathod, while Vishe and Takate secured a rope with the help of locals and threw it into the water. Working together, they managed to pull Battiwala safely to shore.
(From left) MSF jawans Suhas Kadusare, Assistant Security Officer Hirichandra Vishe, Pandurang Kale, and Karan
“When we brought him out, he could barely speak. His mouth and nose were full of seawater,” Vishe told mid-day. “We laid him on the footpath and performed basic first aid to help him vomit out the water. Slowly, he started breathing normally.” Senior Police Inspector Arvind Patil of Worli police station, who was also present at the scene, helped shift Battiwala to a nearby hospital for medical treatment.
After regaining consciousness, Battiwala reportedly told the rescuers, “You saved my life. I can’t thank you enough.” Police later confirmed that Battiwala had consumed alcohol before driving. Based on a complaint by Police Constable Mushir Rashid Tadvi of Worli Police Station, an FIR was registered under Sections 281, 125, 324(3), 324(4) of the BNS, and Section 185 of the Motor Vehicles Act.
According to the FIR, Battiwala was driving recklessly on the Coastal Road, near the Namann Zahana Building, towards the Prabhadevi flyover, when he lost control of his car, broke through the railing, and crashed into the sea — damaging public property in the process. Police said the vehicle remains submerged and will likely be recovered with the help of a crane or a marine unit.
