India, Feb. 21 -- The family of deceased businessman Dhrumil Patel, who was fatally struck by an SUV allegedly driven by a 17-year-old boy earlier this month, has written to police alleging that they were approached "through references" with an offer of Rs.40 lakh as "blood money" to settle the case.

The allegation was made in a February 14 letter addressed to the deputy commissioner of police (zone 6) from Mahesh Patel, Dhrumil's uncle and the original complainant in the FIR registered at the Tilak Nagar police station.

The letter also claimed that social media accounts that had reported about the accident were being intimidated into taking down their posts, which he said "constitutes an attempt to influence, botch up and water down th...