E-Paper
Four killed in auto-SUV collision in Mohali
Eight others hurt. Labourers were on their way to Mataur village for work after arriving from Bihar; 19-year-old SUV driver from Moga arrested
Four migrant labourers were killed and eight others were injured after a speeding SUV collided with their overloaded auto-rickshaw at the Sector 70/71 and Phase 7/3B2 traffic lights on Sunday morning.
The deceased were identified as Jhuna Paswan, 25, Gulab Sheikh, 30, Umesh Yadav, 32, and Suleiman, 30, all natives of Bihar’s Pashchim Champaran district.
The injured are Haider Ali, Nandu Paswan, Satinder Paswan, Chandan Paswan, Bhim Paswan, Mantosh Paswan, Raju Paswan, all from Bihar, and auto driver Ashwani Kumar of Maloya.
Rajeev Kumar, station house officer (SHO), Mataur police station, said the 11 men had come to Mohali to find work.
They had reached Sector 17 ISBT after boarding a bus from the Ambala railway station. From the ISBT, they hailed Ashwani’s auto-rickshaw to reach Mataur village in Mohali.
As the auto reached the Sector 70/71 light point around 7.15am, a Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza jumped over the three-wheeler’s roof and hit the road divider before coming to a halt.
The impact of the collision left the three-wheeler completely mangled, injuring its 11 passengers and driver.
The SUV’s driver, Darshanpreet, 19, a resident of Kokri Buttran village in Moga, escaped with minor injuries as the car’s airbags deployed. He was arrested from the spot. Police said Darshanpreet was returning from Shimla with three friends, all students.
The police reached the spot and took all injured to the Mohali civil hospital in Phase 6.
Jhuna and Gulab were declared brought dead, while Umesh, who was later taken to Government Multi-Specialty Hospital in Sector 16, died during treatment. Suleiman was further referred to PGIMER, Chandigarh, where he also died of grievous injuries. The autopsies will be conducted on Monday.
Nandu remains critical at PGIMER. The remaining injured are admitted to the Mohali civil hospital, while the auto driver was discharged after receiving stitches.
An eyewitness, who is also from Bihar, said the victims kept lying on the road for nearly 30 minutes as no one took them to hospital.
The SHO said the exact cause of the collision between the vehicles was not immediately known. “We are investigating the case,” he added.
Darshanpreet was booked under Sections 304A (causing death by negligence), 279 (rash driving or riding on a public way), 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others), 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety) and 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of fifty rupees) of the Indian Penal Code.
