Man remanded over Mumbai deaths

A court in the Indian city of Mumbai (Bombay) has remanded a man in custody in connection with the deaths of seven pavement dwellers who were run over.

Police have charged Alister Pereira, 22, with culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

They say he was drunk while driving the car which ran into shanty dwellings in the west of the city early on Sunday.

Six people died in the incident, two of them children. Eight others were hurt, one of whom later died of injuries.

Blood tests

Police say six people aged between 18 and 23 were in the Toyota Corolla when the driver lost control in the western suburb of Bandra and mounted the pavement.

According to initial medical reports, Mr Pereira was under the influence of alcohol when driving.

Samples of his blood have been sent for further testing to check if he was under the influence of other intoxicants as well.

The court placed him in police custody until 18 November. If convicted he faces a minimum seven years in jail.

The car's five other occupants have been given bail.

The BBC's Monica Chadha in Mumbai says this is the latest in a series of such cases in the city in recent years in which people sleeping on pavements have been killed or injured.

In 2002, one person was killed and four others were injured after being run over by Bollywood actor Salman Khan's car.

The actor was initially charged with culpable homicide, but the charge was later reduced to death caused by negligent driving - for which there is a minimum sentence of two years.