Indian police have detained a man after footage showing a car hitting a woman motorcyclist in the city of Gurugram near the Indian capital Delhi sparked national outrage.
The incident took place on Sunday when Shivani Chauhan was riding with a group of motorcyclists.
Video recorded by a camera mounted on her bike shows a white car approaching and crashing into her bike. Chauhan falls on the road, her motorcycle is carried away, but the car continues moving.
The clip, which Chauhan shared on Instagram, went viral, prompting the police to launch an investigation. The driver, identified as Kalyan Bainsla, denies hitting her intentionally.
On Tuesday, Gurugram police spokesman Sandeep Kumar confirmed to the BBC that Bainsla, a gym owner from Palwal in Haryana state, had been detained. Police said he borrowed the car from another man.
The case was initially registered under sections of the law pertaining to rash driving and acts endangering life or personal safety. Police later added “attempted murder” to the charges.
In an interview with news channel Aaj Tak, externalBeinsla claimed that members of the cycling group repeatedly overtook his car before stopping in front of it. He said he lost control while making a U-turn while trying to avoid Chauhan’s motorcycle.
Bainsla also said that he initially did not realize that Chauhan was a woman and claimed that he asked her and another rider to slow down.
He claimed he left because motorcyclists were shouting abuse and he was afraid he and his relatives would be attacked.
“If I had stopped right then, these people would have beaten us,” he told the channel.
Chauhan disputed his account. In a video posted to Instagram after the accident, she said the car began following her group shortly after they began their trip.
She claimed that the passengers were hostile and asked her to stop after she told the driver to keep a safe distance. Chauhan said she kept driving because she was afraid a car might block her while a friend riding behind tried to cover her motorcycle.
She also stated that the men in the car were drunk. Police did not say whether alcohol tests were performed.
But Bainsla’s lawyer Naveen Bainsla denied the allegations, telling news agency ANI that his client did not drink and was traveling with relatives. He also rejected the description of the incident as a deliberate “hit and run”, arguing that it was a case of negligent driving.
After Bainsla publicly denied that he hit her intentionally, Chauhan on Monday evening posted another video challenging his version of events.
She said the footage showed which vehicle was moving towards the other. She also rejected his claim that he did not realize she was a woman.
Chauhan also asked why Bainsla did not stop to check on her. “I could have been seriously injured or broken bones. I could have died on the spot,” she said.
Chauhan reportedly suffered minor injuries, but her protective gear is believed to have prevented more serious injuries.
The footage has sparked widespread outrage online and a wider debate about the harassment and hostility women bikers say they face on Indian roads.
Several female riders have shared their experiences of being followed, filmed without consent, or challenged to race, especially when riding high-powered motorcycles.
Divya Sandhu, a horse riding trainer who was involved in a similar collision ten years ago, told NDTV., external channel that the attitude has changed little since then.
“People joke about women’s driving skills a lot,” she said.
Another motorcyclist, Pallavi Singh, said some women covered their hair and wore full protective clothing, in part to avoid being identified or harassed while riding.
