Karnataka: Four heading home killed as their car hits tractor

At least four people were killed after the car they were travelling in rammed into a sugarcane-laden truck at Sunaga cross

Belagavi: Four people from different families died after a car they were travelling in rammed into a sugarcane loaded tractor in Bagalkot on Hubballi-Solapur highway around 4am on Friday, said police.

The incident took place in Badami taluk on the Hubballi-Solapur state highway. (Representational Image)

The victims, identified as Mallu Pujari (24), Kallappa Koutagi (34), Kamakshi Badiger (35), and Tukaram Tahewad (30), were travelling back to their native Honaganahalli in Bilagi taluk from Badami town. The car hit the tractor from the rear side, resulting in the immediate death of all four occupants.

Bagalkot Police Superintendent Amarnath Reddy, who visited the accident site, said, “Four people heading back to their native Honaganahalli in Bilagi taluk from Badami town in the district was killed on the spot when the car hit the tractor from the backside.”

Bilagi Police Inspector BK Halabannavar explained that the high-speed collision caused a significant portion of the car to become stuck below the tractor’s trolley. “The car dashed into the trolley of the tractor laden with sugarcane at such high speed that the police had to use a JCB, an earthmoving vehicle, to pull out the car stuck below the trolley. Upon inspection, all four occupants in the car were found dead,” Inspector Halabannavar said.

The deceased individuals had attended the ‘Rathosthava’ chariot-pulling ceremony and a late-night stage drama organised by the ‘jatra committee’ as part of the annual Banashankari jatra fair festival. Superintendent Reddy mentioned that the ill-fated car left the Badami fair field at around 3 in the morning and collided with a tractor. “The driver might have been in a sleeping mood when the car hit the tractor from the rear side,” SP Reddy added.

The single-trolley tractor was transporting sugarcane to a sugar mill in Bilagi town. The mishap occurred at around 4am, resulting in the immediate death of all four individuals in the car. The bodies were handed over to their relatives after conducting autopsies at the government hospital in Bilagi.

“Honaganahalli village, with around 200 houses, was stunned after hearing about the accident in which four individuals from different families of the village died on the same day,” said Inspector Halabannavar, who transported the deceased bodies to the village.

The Bilagi police have registered and are investigating the case.