Couple, 3-month-old son killed as car falls into water-filled pit in UP’s Hardoi

A couple and their three-month-old son died after their car plunged into a water-filled pit in Hardoi while they were returning from Gurugram for Diwali.

A couple and their three-month-old son were killed after their car fell into a water-filled pit in Uttar Pradesh’s Hardoi district while they were travelling home from Gurugram for Diwali, police said on Friday. Their 28-year-old relative, who was driving the car, was rescued unconscious and hospitalised.

The family was travelling from Gurugram to their native Hardoi for Diwali when their car went out of control and plunged into a water-filled pit around 3.30am.

The car went out of control near Jafarpur turn on the Bilgram-Kannauj road around 3.30am on Friday. Police identified the deceased as Ramesh Kumar Kushwaha (35), his wife Neelam (32), and their three-month-old son. Ramesh worked with a private company in Gurugram, where he lived with his wife and child. The family was originally from Hardoi.

According to Bilgram circle officer Ram Surat Sonkar, police received information about the accident around 4am. When the police team reached the spot, the car was completely submerged. With the help of villagers, police personnel entered the water, opened the car doors using ropes and pulled out all four occupants.

Ramesh, Neelam and their infant son were declared dead by doctors on reaching the hospital. The fourth occupant, identified as Aditya, was taken to the district hospital in adjoining Kannauj district for treatment.

All three bodies were sent for post-mortem examination, station house officer (SHO)Vijay Kumar said.

Ramesh’s brother, Sumesh, said that the family last spoke to his brother around 6pm on Thursday. The three of them were supposed to leave Gurugram by car at 7pm and reach home by morning. “My brother was employed in Gurugram and was coming home for the Diwali holidays,” Sumesh said.

Ramesh married Neelam, a resident of Gausganj in Sandila, in December 2022. Aditya, Ramesh’s maternal uncle’s son, also lived in Gurugram and was originally from Kakadeo in Kanpur.

Police are investigating how the car went off the road and plunged into the pit.