Six-year-old killed in Janakpuri hit-and-run; family alleges passersby failed to help

The family alleged that the driver, identified as Sanjeev Dabas, did not stop and fled the spot. They said many gathered at the spot only to shoot videos and no one helped

Days after a six-year-old girl died and her maternal grandmother was injured after being hit by a speeding car in west Delhi’s Janakpuri, the family alleged that the child could have been saved had passersby intervened in time.

Six-year-old Preshell Prince who died in the accident on Tuesday morning.

On Tuesday around 7.40am, six-year-old Preshell Prince was on her way to prep school with her grandmother, Mercy Xavier (57), in an e-rickshaw when a speeding Santro rammed the vehicle near the Janakpuri fire station, causing it to overturn.

The child, the youngest of two siblings, had started prep school last year. Her father, Prince John, works as a supply chain manager at a private medical firm, while her mother, Soumya Xavier, is a nursing officer at Max Hospital in Dwarka. Her elder sister is 10.

“My daughters are everything to me. I started working to give them a better life. My mother usually drops Preshell to school. A speeding car hit them and the accused fled,” Soumya told HT. “For 10-15 minutes, my mother begged passersby for help. People gathered, took photos and left. Nobody helped.”

She said a colleague who was passing by later took the child to hospital on a scooter. “I thought my daughter would survive… but she died within a few hours. I want justice for her.”

Mercy said the car was being driven recklessly. “I didn’t even see it. It rammed the e-rickshaw and Preshell was trapped underneath. Her head was crushed. I picked her up and begged for help. I stopped four or five cars, but nobody helped. By the time help came, it was too late,” she said.

The family alleged that the driver, identified as Sanjeev Dabas, did not stop and fled the spot. Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Darade Sharad Bhaskar said Dabas was later tracked down and bound down under preventive provisions.

Police said Dabas, a lab assistant, was on his way to work at the time of the incident. Investigators are still ascertaining the sequence of events and questioning him.

Preshell had suffered severe head and chest injuries. Her grandmother sustained minor injuries in the fall.

The family, originally from Kerala’s Kottayam, has been living in Delhi for the past 10 years.

Preshell’s paternal grandmother, Grace Sunny, said she rushed to Delhi from Kerala. “By the time I arrived, she had died. She was first taken to Mata Chanan Devi Hospital, where doctors said her condition was critical. My son then rushed her to Max Hospital, but she did not survive,” she said.