One dead, another hurt in Keshav Puram hit-and-run

Two men were returning home on a scooter after a watching a movie early Friday morning, police officers said, and added that the two were dragged for almost 350 metres atop the car

A 41-year-old man died while his friend was admitted to a city hospital when a car hit them in north-west Delhi’s Keshav Puram area when they were returning home on a scooter after a watching a movie early Friday morning, police officers aware of the case said, and added that the two were dragged for almost 350 metres atop the car.

Officers added that there were five men in the car, a Tata Zest, who were all drunk. They were returning after attending a wedding. (CCTV footage grab)

Officers added that there were five men in the car, a Tata Zest, who were all drunk. They were returning after attending a wedding, they said.

Police said the accident took place at 2.57am in the Prerna Chowk area of Kanhaiya Nagar in northwest Delhi’s Keshav Puram. Deputy commissioner of police (north-west) Usha Rangnani said, two police vehicles that were patrolling near the accident spot chased the Tata Zest car when the driver tried to flee after the accident. Two car occupants including its driver were arrested from near the accident spot, she said.

“At 2.57am, two PCR vans were patrolling when they noticed that a Tata Zest car hit a Honda Activa scooter. The impact of the collision was such that one person was flung in the air, and landed on the roof of the car, before falling to the ground. The second one got stuck between the bonnet and the windshield of the car. The bonnet had opened because of the impact of the accident. The scooter also got stuck under the car’s bumper. Instead of stopping the vehicle, the driver accelerated it towards Inderlok,” said DCP Rangnani.

Police personnel in one of the PCR vans intercepted the vehicle nearly 350 metres away from the accident spot, the DCP said.

“As soon as they PCR van intercepted the car, the occupants got down and tried to flee. Two, including the driver identified as Praveen alias Silli(20), and Diviansh Puri (20) were arrested immediately. There others, however, fled. The police team in the other vehicle rushed the two injured to a nearby hospital,” DCP Rangnani added.

During the day, police arrested the other three men -- Om Bhardwaj(19), Harsh Mudgal (19), and Devansh (19).

Police identified the two victims as Kailash Bhatnagar(41) and Sumit Khari(19). The two men work at a jeans manufacturing unit. Police said Bhatnagar was declared brought dead at the hospital, while Khari is being treated for his injuries. Police investigation revealed Khari was riding the scooter.

Police said they have registered a case under sections of culpable homicide not amounting to murder (304), causing death due to negligence(304 A), and other sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). All five were under the influence of alcohol, DCP Rangani said.

Police said all five are students of private colleges.

The Tata Zest car is registered under the name of Bhardwaj’s father. “Divanish Puri had gone to a friend’s wedding. After the wedding, he called his four friends to the venue. We are probing where they drank alcohol. It looks like they drank outside the wedding venue,” an investigating officer said.

This is the second accident case, after the Janaury 1 Sultanpuri hit-and-drag incident, in which the police have booked the accused under the stringent section 304(culpable homicide not amounting to murder). In the Sultanpuri case, in which a 20-year-old woman was dragged for almost 14 km, police have also added murder charges to the FIR. Initially, the case was filed under 304 IPC, in which the maximum punishment could be life imprisonment. Anjali Kumari(20) along with her friend Nidhi were returning home on a scooter in the early hours of January 1 ,when four men in a Baleno car hit their scooter. While Nidhi escaped the accident with minor injuries, Anjali, who was stuck under the car, was dragged for almost 14 km. Police said Anjali may have died within minutes of the being dragged. Her body was dislodged after almost two hours and 14 km away from where the accident happened. The accident triggered protests across city, prompting the Ministry of Home Affairs to order and inquiry into the accident. On the basis of the inquiry ordered by the MHA, 11 police personnel were suspended, and murder charges have been added to the FIR.