Man learning driving hits 3 kids in north Delhi; victims escape with injuries

The driver, identified as Gajender (single name), a resident of Pratap Nagar, was learning to drive his brother-in-law’s Maruti Brezza, the officers said, adding that he did not have a valid regular or learner’s driving licence.

A 30-year-old man learning to drive lost control of his vehicle on Sunday morning in north Delhi’s Gulabi Bagh area, mounting a footpath and critically injuring three children, police officers aware of the matter said.

The pavement in Gulabi Bagh where a Brezza car hit three children on Sunday. (HT Photo)

The driver, identified as Gajender (single name), a resident of Pratap Nagar, was learning to drive his brother-in-law’s Maruti Brezza, the officers said, adding that he did not have a valid regular or learner’s driving licence. He was being assisted by his friend Karan (single name), they said.

Deputy commissioner of police (north) Sagar Singh Kalsi said the accident took place at around 9 am near Lilawati School at Shakti Nagar. “Gajender lost control of the car and it climbed onto a footpath, hitting three children who were standing around a bonfire to warm themselves. The children were rushed to a nearby hospital, and have been declared out of danger,” said Kalsi.

CCTV footage of the incident that emerged on social media shows a white car mounting a footpath, allegedly at high speed, and hitting a concrete wall before moving ahead and stopping. Although the footage does not show the car hitting the three children, a child is seen dragged along the car and falling on the footpath. As the driver emerges from the vehicle, a few onlookers catch him and purportedly assault him.

“We have impounded the car for its inspection to ascertain if any mechanical fault led to the accident or if it was caused because its driver lost control. Further action against the owner of the car would be taken accordingly,” said a senior police officer.

Police withheld the names of the injured children, saying they were minors. They are students at a nearby MCD-run primary school, officers said, adding that their family members are daily wagers.

“We are waiting for the medico-legal certificates (MLCs) of the injured children. As of now, a case has been registered for rash and negligent driving causing hurt under Indian Penal Code’s sections 279 and 337. We will examine the MLCs and accordingly add sections to the case. Sections 3/181 and 5/181 of the Motor Vehicle Act have been added to the first information report (FIR) for driving without a driving licence and authorizing another person to drive a car without driving licence,” said Kalsi.

An eyewitness, who identified himself as Monu, said that local residents had Gajendra not to learn how drive on a busy road.

“We had asked them not to learn driving as there is a school nearby and it is a crowded area. But they did not listen to us. The car took two rounds and stopped. The third time, its driver lost control and hit the three children who were on the footpath,” he said.

In 2021, 4,720 road crashes took place in Delhi in which 4,273 people were injured and 1,239 lost their lives, according to the Delhi Road Crash Report of 2021 released by the Delhi Traffic police. The report shows that 41% of the total victims killed in road crashes in Delhi were pedestrians, with the scooter or motorcycle riders being the second most vulnerable group constituting 38% of fatalities.

Last Sunday, two Class 9 students of a Delhi government school were killed after an allegedly speeding Maruti Swift car hit them while they were crossing the Rohtak Road between Metro pillar number 293 and 294 in Peeragarhi area in west Delhi. Local residents caught the driver at the accident spot and handed him over to the police.

The place where the accident took place on Sunday is just a few metres away from the spot (near Metro pillar 290) where an allegedly speeding car had hit three Class 12 students of another government school in the same neighbourhood, claiming life of one of them and injuring the other two on April 6.