Liberal MPP Kuldip Kular, who was involved in an accident in Brampton that sent a pedestrian to hospital with minor injuries, will be charged with leaving the scene of an accident, police say.

Const. J. P. Valade of Peel police said Sunday evening that Kular, who has represented Bramalea-Gore-Malton since 2003, will get a summons in the next few days.

"The substance of the charge is that he didn't provide the information he is legally required to in such an event," said Valade.

According to police, Kular was driving about 7 p.m. Friday when he struck a 39-year-old man at Torbram Rd. and Bovaird Dr. The pedestrian had the right of way, they said.

Witnesses told investigators they saw the driver get out of a silver sedan and speak to the victim before taking off, leaving the pedestrian with a cut on his forearm and bruises all over his body.

"On Friday evening an incident occurred while I was driving to my Brampton home," Kular, 60, said later in a statement to the Star. "While no charges have been laid as a result of this incident, I have and will continue to cooperate with police."

However, Const. Valade confirmed Sunday that a charge will be laid under the Highway Traffic Act.

The probe is in its early stages, he said, and "it's very possible another charge could be laid" – either a traffic or criminal charge.

A source close to Kular said it was raining at the time and the MPP believes the man slipped and fell.

"He doesn't believe that he hit him," the insider said. "He stopped his car, got out and helped him up. When he saw he had a cut, he asked if he wanted him to call an ambulance. The guy said he was fine and went off on his way."

When Kular got home that night, family members said investigators had stopped by.

The MPP was at a police station for two hours on Saturday, the insider said.

"They didn't charge him with anything," the source said.

Because failing to remain at the scene of an accident isn't a criminal offence, Kular will be issued a traffic ticket with a court date, police said. If found guilty, he faces a fine.

Earlier this summer, former Liberal attorney general Michael Bryant was charged with criminal negligence causing death and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death after a cyclist was struck by a car and dragged along Bloor St.

Kular, a doctor by profession, is the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care and serves on several government committees.

One of Kular's friends said he was shocked to hear the allegations.

"He's a friendly, courteous man. It seems very unlikely of him leaving a pedestrian if the person was hurt, if that is what happened," said friend Vijay Sharma.

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Kular's house in Brampton was dark Sunday evening, and calls to the home went unanswered.

Officials in Premier Dalton McGuinty's office said they could not comment on the incident, and it is unclear whether Kular will face any consequences in the Legislature.

In December 1999, rookie Liberal MPP Claudette Boyer was asked to step down as opposition critic for francophone affairs after she was charged with four criminal offences, including obstructing police.

McGuinty removed her from his caucus in 2001 after she pleaded guilty.

Similarly, New Democratic Party MPP Drummond White had to sit as an Independent in 1994 after he was charged with assault. The charges were later dismissed and he was allowed back into the NDP caucus.

Kular is popular among his riding's large South Asian population and easily won re-election in 2007 by nearly 6,000 votes.

The married father of four has maintained a part-time medical practice because, he says, he doesn't want to add to the doctor shortage. That decision has drawn flak from his critics, who accuse him of being a "part-time MPP."

In 1993, he pleaded guilty to professional misconduct and was reprimanded by the Ontario College of Physicians and Surgeons for poor record keeping and improperly prescribing Tylenol 3.

His clinic was later inspected by the college and received favourable reviews, he told the Star in 2003.

In 2008, he championed a private member's bill to ban single-use water bottles, which was defeated.





With files from Robert Benzie and Madeleine White

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