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A woman was killed and seven others were injured after a speeding car crashed into three two-wheelers and passersby in the posh Karelibaug area of Gujarat’s Vadodara late on Thursday night. The man driving the car and his co-passenger, both reportedly students, have been arrested, the police said, adding that a probe is on to ascertain if they were under the influence of intoxicants at the time. Even as the man who was driving the car, has claimed that he had ‘bhaang’, the police have collected samples to determine the intoxicant.
According to the police, Rakshit Chaurasiya was behind the wheel of a speeding Volkswagen Virtus that crashed into three two-wheelers, killing Hemali Patel, who had stepped out to buy Holi colours, and injuring several others, including two girls aged 10 and 12. While three of the seven people injured are critical, three others sustained minor injuries, the police said.
Chaurasiya was accompanied by co-accused Praanshu Chauhan, the son of the owner of the car, the police said. While Chaurasiya was arrested at the spot after he was caught by locals, Chauhan was arrested a few hours later after the accident.
In a video of the accident widely shared on social media, Chaurasiya is purportedly seen stepping out of the damaged car at the accident spot. While Chauhan is purportedly seen trying to free himself from Chaurasiya’s grip and blaming the accident on him, Chaurasiya is heard repeating , “Another round”.
Chaurasiya is said to be a law student of M S University while Chauhan is a student of mass communication at Waghodia-based Parul University.
“So far, the investigation has revealed that seven persons were injured and a woman was killed. The driver of the car has been arrested. The son of the car owner was traced after he left the crime scene…Police officials and forensic experts are probing,” Narasimha Komar, Vadodara Police Commissioner, said.
“We have formed multiple teams to investigate the two men to understand who else was with them, and the cause of this accident. We will trace the sequence and gather oral, scientific, eyewitness and CCTV evidence…a medical investigation is necessary to ascertain if they were under the influence of alcohol or any other intoxicating substance,” Komar added.
Following his arrest by Karelibaug police station, Chaurasia is heard telling mediapersons, “We were returning from a friend’s house when I lost control of the car as it was an automatic vehicle. The sensors went off and the airbags inflated when we crashed into the first two-wheeler. Thereafter, I couldn’t see anything… I had consumed bhaang (derived from cannabis) several hours ago… My apology will not change the damage I have caused, I understand that…”
The Vadodara city police did not confirm the nature of the intoxicant, stating that the FSL report would be a conclusive one. Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zone 4, Panna Momaya speaking to mediapersons said, “We have collected blood samples of the two accused and sent them to FSL.”
Momaya added that the car was registered in the name of a private company, where Praanshu Chauhan’s father is an employee.
A case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder has been registered at the Karelibaug police station.
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