A speeding Thar mowed down a 59-year-old man and his two grandchildren, aged 8 and 10, killing all three on the spot at Khod village in Pataudi late Friday night, police said on Saturday. The driver of the vehicle, which bears a Gurugram registration, was arrested, they said.
The police identified the victims as Subhash Khan, and his grandchildren, Ishant Khan and Jaid Khan, who were from Milakpur Goojar in Alwar of Rajasthan and were visiting their grandparents.
Azad Singh, a villager who reached the spot immediately after the incident and viewed CCTV camera footage of the incident, said that the Thar was being driven at such a high speed that Subhash, upon being hit, was flung in the air for almost 30 feet and landed on a brick wall, causing his death instantly.
“The Thar ended up getting trapped between a tree on the roadside and an electric pole, after hitting them. The driver rang someone, after which another car reached the spot within minutes. The driver got in and fled the spot without helping the victims,” he said, adding that Subhash had met with an accident hardly one-and-a-half months ago and was yet to recover from a limb fracture.
Police said that the incident took place at a curve on the road connecting Lokra and Khod villages at 10.53pm on Friday, when the trio were taking a stroll after dinner.
Investigators said that passersby rushed the three of them to the community health centre in Pataudi, where doctors declared them dead, and also called the police control room.
Police said the entire incident was recorded in a CCTV camera near the spot. They said the Thar veered off course due to speeding.
Sachin Thakran, another villager, said that Ishant and Jaid lived in Alwar and were visiting Subhash, their maternal grandfather, and had got here only six days ago due to school holidays. “Subhash had taken the two kids to meet his younger brother at his home. The trio had their dinner there and were walking back to home when the Thar hit them,” he said.
Sandeep Turan, public relations officer of Gurugram police, said that the Thar driver was arrested on Saturday.
“He was identified as Deepanshu, 25, of Goriawas in Pataudi. The Thar was bearing a Gurugram registration number and belonged to his friend,” he said.
“An FIR under sections 106 (causing death by negligence) and 281 (rash driving) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was registered against him on complaint of Salim Khan, Subhash’s younger brother, at Pataudi police station on Saturday,” he said.
All three bodies were handed over to the family after carrying out autopsies on Saturday.