A sessions court in Mumbai on Tuesday recorded the statement of 12 witnesses in a case related to a youth who ran over seven people while driving his car under the influence of alcohol.

Alister Pereira has been charged with running his car over labourers sleeping on a pavement in suburban Bandra on November 7, 2006.

Eight persons were injured in the incident.

The 12 people who deposed were the eight who were injured, an eye-witness, the doctor who examined the injured and Pereira after the incident, a photographer and a 'panch' witness.

While the injured said they were unconscious and could not identify the accused, the photographer said the photos taken and filed with the charge sheet were different from the ones shown in court.

The doctor told the court that Pereira was incoherent when he examined him after the incident.

His blood pressure was fluctuating and he was reeking of alcohol. The 'panch' identified material seized from the accident site.

Defence lawyer Jayesh Yagni told PTI that a total of 44 witnesses had been summoned in connection with the case, which attracted a lot of media attention.

Judge Ajit Mishra came down heavily on the prosecution as the case documents had not been submitted yet.

Though the injured were from Andhra Pradesh, there was no interpreter for the court proceedings to continue smoothly.

The 21-year-old Pereira was booked under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of IPC. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in jail.