NRI beautician Nooriya Haveliwala, who on January 30, 2010 had rammed her SUV, killing two people and injuring three others, has been sentenced to 5-year rigourous imprisonment, along with a fine of Rs 5 lakh by a special NDPS court.

Who is Nooriya?

Nooriya is a beautician by profession, who returned to India post her beauty course in the US where her two brothers are settled. Her father, Yousuf Haveliwala, was a psychiatrist by profession, who passed away post the incident. She had recently started taking makeup and bridal dressing offers. Haveliwala is a resident of Sagar Sangeet in Colaba, the same building that was in the news, when Colonel Rajneesh Behl (father of actor Mohnish Behl and actress Nutan's husband) died in a fire which reportedly started in his flat.

What crime did she commit?

The India-born US national tested positive for drugs and alcohol when she was arrested on January 30, 2010 for ramming her SUV at Marine Drive in South Mumbai. The beautician was charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder, rash and negligent driving, and various sections of the Motor Vehicles Act, the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.The beautician has been acquitted of the charges levelled under the stringent Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

What happened that night?

The beautician had partied with friends at a flat in Malabar Hill area, before heading to a pub in Mumbai Central following which she went to a wine shop to pick up more beer cans. As she was driving under the influence of alcohol, she lost control of her Honda CRV and rammed into people, killing two and injuring three others. That night, 457 mg of alcohol was found in Haveliwala's blood, which is more than nine times the permissible limit.
What saved Nooriya that night?
Despite turning turtle twice in her car Nooriya Haveliwala escaped unhurt. So what saved Nooriya? She may have done everything wrong that fateful night but a precaution - fastening her seat belt before setting out on the nightmarish drive - is the one right thing that ended up saving her life.

Brief timeline

January 29, 2010: Nooriya parties with friends and goes to a wine shop to pick up more alcohol. She, under the influence of alcohol, loses control of her Honda CRV and rams into people.

Januray 30, 2010: She is taken into custody and charged with various sections of the Motor Vehicles Act violation.

Januray 2010: she spends five days in police custody, 20 days in JJ hospital on 'medical grounds' and the rest in Byculla jail.

April 4, 2010:  Nooriya walks out on bail after the police fail to file the chargesheet within 60 days.

Other infamous cases of drunken driving

Ronit Roy: Ronit Roy aka Mr Bajaj was also in the dock for rash driving. The 42-year-old actor was behind the wheels of his Mercedes when he rammed into a WagonR with four occupants, injuring three of them.

Mika Singh: Mika Was in trouble after a Hummer allegedly driven by him knocked down an autorickshaw and rammed into a bus stop near Versova.

John Abraham: John was found guilty of rash driving, he injured two men in a motorcycle and was sentenced to 15 days of jail.

Sanjeev Nanda: The grandson of former Navy chief S M Nanda, was convicted for a two-year jail term for mowing down six persons, including three policemen in Delhi in 1999.

Aditi Jagtap: Daughter of a well known cardiologist in Pune, Aditi rammed her speeding luxury car into 14 other vehicles injuring at least 10 people.

Salman Khan: He rammed his car running four people and killing one. There was homicide charge against Salman Khan but that got dropped in 2007.