A 42-year-old man was crushed to death by a marauding Range Rover SUV on Sunday morning. The accident took place near Kanhaiya Nagar Metro station in North-West Delhi.
Driven fast by the 23-year-old son of a wealthy businessman, the SUV mowed down the man, identified as Jokhu Prasad, a native of Basti district in Uttar Pradesh. The victim’s family members had a miraculous escape as they jumped aside to save themselves but poor Jokhu Prasad could not do so. The impact of the hit was such that Jokhu Prasad was flung in the air and landed a few feet away from the vehicle. He died on the spot.
The errant driver, identified as Sukreet Singh, was later arrested by police on charges of rash and negligent driving causing death. The SUV was recently bought by the father of the victim and he had gone to Gurgaon to get the papers of the vehicle.
Police said that Jokhu Prasad was a labourer and lived in a rented accommodation in JJ Colony Wazirpur with his brother and cousin and other relatives. The killer vehicle was coming from Gurgaon side when Sukreet Singh at the wheel apparently lost control over the vehicle while he negotiated a sharp turn. Sukreet’s friend Puneet was also in the vehicle at the time of the accident.
Sukreet and Puneet tried to flee the spot after the hit-and-run but they were chased by the locals who managed to catch hold of them. Before police could arrive on the scene, the duo was given a sound thrashing by angry onlookers before handing them over to the police. The mob did not stop there as they indulged in rioting and damaged other vehicles too. The situation was brought under control only after the senior police officers intervened and the accused were arrested by the staff of Keshav Puram police station.
According to a senior police official of North-West district, the accident took place at around 2 am when the victim was walking back to his residence after watching a Ramlila organised at a nearby temple.
“They were engrossed in conversation and were walking when the SUV appeared out of nowhere. Eyewitnesses told police that it was being driven very fast and the driver tried to steer but could not. Poor Jokhu was hit by the vehicle while his brother and cousin had a narrow escape. The driver slammed the brakes to save the others. The driver and his friend were saved as the airbags deployed.