Truck driver on the run: Five killed as truck swerves into divider, hits oncoming Innova

The impact of the collision was such that the car “flipped multiple times before finally landing on its roof”. The truck, meanwhile, came to a halt after running into a roadside railing.

Police said they had to use glass cutters to open the car door and pull out the bodies and those injured. The truck driver, meanwhile, fled the spot.

DCP (east) Ombir Singh Bishnoi said they suspect that the truck, which has been seized, belongs to the East Delhi Municipal Corporation.

The deceased have been identified as Mehraj Siddiqui (36), who owned the Innova and was driving it; Qamar Abbas Zaidi (55), his wife Anjum Fatima Zaidi (50), their son Azhar Abbas Zaidi (18) and daughter Juhi Fatima Zaidi (13). The injured have been identified as Anjum Fatima (45) and her son Ali Zaidi and Qamar’s son and niece, Mohammad Abbas Zaidi (16) and Sujaina (7).

Police said Qamar and his family had gone to receive Anjum Fatima and her son Ali Zaidi, who had come from Iran.

A case under IPC sections 304 (causing death by negligence), 279 (rash driving) and 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) has been registered against the truck driver at Kalyanpuri police station.

Nemawati, an eyewitness who lives in a JJ cluster nearby, said, “I heard a loud noise around 4 am. My husband and I came out of the house and found that a truck had hit the roadside railing. There was an overturned car as well and a crowd had gathered.”

Police sources said the divider on NH-24, which connects Ghaziabad with Delhi, is “uneven” and “low at a few places”.

Police suspect the truck “jumped” after hitting the divider and ran into the vehicle coming from the opposite side.

A relative, Kausar Abbas, told The Indian Express that Qamar and his family had left Meerut on Tuesday night. “They picked up Anjum and her son from the airport and were returning home. Anjum is the wife of Qamar’s younger brother, who has been living in Tehran for the past 10 years,” Abbas said. He added that Qamar ran a garment business in Meerut.