Family loses its only hope

Every day his family of four eagerly awaited his return from work. But on Thursday, the eve of his 30th birthday, Rahul Mehra left in the morning never to return again. Faizan Haider reports.

Every day his family of four eagerly awaited his return from work. But on Thursday, the eve of his 30th birthday, Rahul Mehra left in the morning never to return again.

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A money collector, Mehra's family members including wife Meenakshi and two daughters Manvi (7) and Chahak (3) and his 60-year-old mother are still in a state of shock.

"The whole family was dependent on him as he was the only earning member. His father had died five years ago and since then he has taken the responsibility of the entire family. At 6:30pm we got a call from his mobile phone informing us about the accident," said Rahul Malhotra, brother-in-law of the victim.

Mehra was living in N-42, Malka Ganj, with his family and had left for work at his usual time at 9:30am on Thursday.

"He was working with a company called Novelty based in Sadar Bazar. His job was to collect money from clients and he had gone to Mehrauli for the same that day," Malhotra added.

Soon after the accident Mehra was rushed to AIIMS trauma centre where the doctors declared him brought dead. Doctors said he died due to head injuries and excessive bleeding.

Mehra's family, meanwhile, have blamed the police for showing alleged laxity in handling the case.

"The medical examination of the accused was conducted only after we forced them to. Instead of questioning the accused, the police was supporting him," alleged Jitesh, a friend of the deceased. The family also alleged that they were forced to stay at Mehrauli police station till late in the night.

"The eyewitnesses and patrolling staff said Rahul was not coming from the wrong side. Ramesh Kaitan was speeding and hit Rahul's bike from the side. He even fled from the spot after the incident," the brother-in-law said. The body was handed over to the family members after the post-mortem examination on Friday afternoon.

According to the police, Khaitan was not drunk as per preliminary reports and the accident happened because of a "blind spot" and a "sharp curve".