SUV crushes 52-yr-old bicyclist in Noida; driver arrested

The victim was returning home from work at the time of the accident and was declared dead after being rushed to a nearby hospital. He is survived by his wife and two sons

A 52-year-old cyclist was killed after he was mowed down by a speeding BMW SUV in Noida on Monday night, police said on Tuesday, adding that the car’s driver was arrested for rash driving and causing death by negligence.

Eyewitnesses described a severe impact that caused the car, with the injured cyclist, to skid nearly 100 meters before hitting a streetlight pole and stopping on the footpath. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

The incident took place around 11pm, near a government school on Maharaja Agrasen Marg, on a section of road next to Sector 31 under the Noida Elevated Road, which links Sector 62 with Sector 18

Eyewitnesses described a severe impact that caused the car, with the injured cyclist, to skid nearly 100 meters before hitting a streetlight pole and stopping on the footpath.

Police identified the driver of the car as Mankul Mahajan, a 35-year-old property dealer and resident of Sector 44. Deputy commissioner of police (Noida) Yamuna Prasad said that Mahajan claimed to the police that the cyclist “suddenly appeared” in front of his car in dense fog as he was returning home. Police said no alcohol was found in his system.

The victim was identified as Ashok Kumar Sharma, a resident of Barola near Sector 49 who worked at a shoe factory in Sector 9. He was returning home from work at the time of the accident and is survived by his wife and two sons. He was declared dead after being rushed to a nearby hospital.

A security guard at Sector 25, Avadhesh Kumar, witnessed the aftermath.

“I heard a loud thud at around 11pm. A man was lying injured a few metres ahead of the car,” he said, adding that the car’s front was severely damaged. He noted the driver appeared to be stumbling and that police arriving at the scene apprehended him shortly after.

A case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has been registered at Sector 20 police station. The accused was produced before a court on Tuesday, where investigators sought his custody for further questioning.