At least 12 people, including a child, were injured after two groups clashed with each other following a road rage incident. The incident took place in Modi Nagar, near NH 58, in Ghaziabad on Sunday afternoon.
Both groups claimed that acid was used during the brawl. A number of victims had burn injuries and were rushed to a Ghaziabad hospital.
The incident was reported around 1.30pm on Sunday when the families of one Dhirendra Kumar and his brother Sanjay were travelling to Delhi in a Santro car.
“When we reached the area near the sugar mill, a bike hit an auto, which hit our car. The auto driver started fighting with us. Later, several people arrived from a nearby dairy plant and started thrashing us with rods. They even threw a bucket of acid at us,” said Sanjay, who was among the injured.
While he and his son Abhishek suffered severe burn injuries on their head and hands, Dhirendra’s injuries were spread across his body. The three were rushed to a district hospital in Sanjay Nagar, which later referred them to another hospital for better treatment. A police van from Modi Nagar also brought in 10 injured from the other group to the hospital.
Refuting Sanjay’s allegations, Naveen Kumar Garg — the owner of the dairy — alleged that he was in his house, which is on a floor above the dairy, when he saw the men in the Santro car beating up the auto driver. “When we rushed to the spot and tried to intervene, they called in some of their accomplices. One of them threw a bucket of acid at us,” Garg alleged.
{{/usCountry}}Refuting Sanjay’s allegations, Naveen Kumar Garg — the owner of the dairy — alleged that he was in his house, which is on a floor above the dairy, when he saw the men in the Santro car beating up the auto driver. “When we rushed to the spot and tried to intervene, they called in some of their accomplices. One of them threw a bucket of acid at us,” Garg alleged.
{{/usCountry}}Garg and his cousin Pawan Kumar also suffered serious injuries in their eyes and faces. Garg said that a few litres of acid, used for testing milk, were thrown at them during the altercation. A three-year-old boy from his family also reportedly suffered burn injuries.
The hospital’s senior consultant on duty, Dr VB Dhaka, said the burn injuries were seemingly due to acid. “We gave them first aid and referred three of them to another hospital at their request,” Dhaka added.
Brij Mohan Yadav, SHO Modi Nagar, said the police are investigating the accident case. “We have sent all the injured for medical examination and are still awaiting any complaints. The matter will be investigated thoroughly,” Yadav said.