Pune: A 21-year-old student died after his speeding car collided head-on with an alcohol-laden truck while overtaking other vehicles near Empress Garden in the early hours of Monday. Such was the speed of the car that it was badly damaged and bent the truck’s wheel rod.
The deceased was identified as Akshay Ashok Patil, a resident of Amar Ambience in Sopanbaug, Ghorpadi. Based on the complaint by truck driver Dilip Vithal Bhoite (40) of Nimbodi in Indapur taluka, an FIR was registered against Patil for offences under sections 279 (rash driving), 304a (causing death due to negligence), 427 (mischief causing damage) of the Indian Penal Code and section 184 (driving dangerously) of Motor Vehicles Act.
The police said the incident took place at 1.30 am on Monday. The truck left Baramati at 10 pm on Sunday and was going to deliver McDowell alcohol bottles at Chakan. “After tea at Morgaon, I left for Chakan. There was a huge rush on the Empress Garden road as people had gathered at St Patrick Church for Christmas celebrations. As vehicles were parked on both sides of the road, traffic was moving at a slow pace. It took half an hour to cross the Empress Garden gate from Bhairobanala Chowki. A white speeding car (Verna MH14CS77) while trying to overtake vehicles, suddenly came in front from the opposite direction. As the traffic was slow, I halted the truck. The car driver also applied brakes but lost control and the car collided with the truck on my (driver) side. The drivers side of the car was badly damaged and it turned around,” Bhoite
stated in his complaint.
The accident spot is between Empress Garden gate and the cantonment vehicle entry tax booth. “I got down and saw that a youth was inside the car. People started gathering there. Fearing that they will beat me, I fled to the nearby traffic police post. They sent me to Bhairobanala police chowki and I remained there till my brother arrived a few hours later,” he said.
Body remained in car for 1 hour
The police and fire brigade said the body remained entangled in the car for about one hour. As people and the police could not take it out, they called the Pune Cantonment Board (PCB) fire brigade but they also could not help. Later the Central Fire Brigade in Lohiyanagar was asked for help.
“We had gone to douse a fire in Sahakarnagar when this call came. We reached at 2.30 am and got the body out within a few minutes by removing the rods and other metals. We came back at 3.15 am,” said leading fireman Rajaram Kedari from
Central Fire Brigade.
Dead on arrival
Investigating officer Police Sub Inspector Rekha Kale from Ghorpadi Bazar police chowki under Wanawadi police station told Sakal Times, “Patil was taken to Inamdar Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival. The cause of death is multiple injuries. His parents are out of Pune, hence the body was handed over to his uncle. Patil was a student. We will soon send a report to the RTO also.”
When asked if Patil was drunk, PSI Kale added, “As of now no such information has come to light.”
Damage
As per the FIR, the truck sustained a loss of Rs 40,000 while the car was damaged for Rs 4,00,000.
