Hit-&-run: Police grope for killer drivers in the dark

In the past two years more than 1,900 'unknown' people involved in hit-and run cases have managed to go scot-free due to dearth of eyewitnesses. Karan Choudhury reports.

In the past two years more than 1,900 'unknown' people involved in hit-and run cases have managed to go scot-free due to dearth of eyewitnesses. Most of these accidents occur during the night, making it next to impossible to find too many eyewitnesses to lead to the killers.

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Every year on an average more than 800 such cases go unsolved. This year, out of the 372 fatal accidents till date, 50% of them were hit-and-run cases.

"Most of these incidents happened during midnight and wee hours when not many people are out on the streets. There are no witnesses in any of these cases. Also, CCTV camera coverage cannot be provided everywhere. So, not all accidents can be captured on camera. That is the reason these cases go unsolved," said Satyendra Garg, joint commissioner of police (traffic).

In 2009, out of the 980 hit- and-run cases, only 17 people were arrested. The figure went down to just nine last year.

The police claim that there is a considerable amount of time lapse between a hit-and-run accident and the incident reported to police. "By the time the incident is reported, the vehicle involved manages to slip out of our radar," said a police officer.