Former Delhi chief minister and BJP vice-president Sahib Singh Verma and three others died in a car crash in Rajasthan’s Alwar district on Saturday.
Verma, a former Union minister who represented Outer Delhi in the Lok Sabha from 1999 to 2004, was returning to Delhi after engagements in Neem Ka Thana in Sikar district.
The accident occurred on NH-8 near Sakatpura village around 2.10 pm. DSP Rajesh Gupta, who was in an escort vehicle, told HT that Verma’s Tata Safari had a head-on collision with a truck.
SSP Alwar, Biju George Joseph, said: "A speeding truck coming from the opposite direction lost control trying to avoid a cyclist. The truck went over the divider and into the opposite lane. The Safari rammed into the truck head-on.” The truck driver, who has been arrested, was not drunk.
Gajender Singh, who identified himself as a relative of Verma, said: "I was at about 100 metres behind in my Skoda… The Tata Safari was so badly damaged that it took some time to extricate the occupants.”
Verma, driver Devesh and an aide, Naresh Agarwal, were declared dead at the nearby Shahjanpur Civil Hospital. Verma had major skull injuries. His gunman Jagbir Singh died on the way to SMS Hospital in Jaipur.
Delhi government offices and secretariat will remain closed on Monday as a mark of respect for Verma.
{{/usCountry}}Delhi government offices and secretariat will remain closed on Monday as a mark of respect for Verma.
{{/usCountry}}(Inputs from KS Tomar in Jaipur)