Oil tanker mows down five in Panipat

Tribune News Service

Panipat, May 23

A speeding oil tanker crushed five persons to death near Jhatipur village in the district in the early hours of Tuesday. Two persons died on the spot while three were declared brought dead by doctors in a private hospital.

The deceased have been identified as Kuldeep (27), a resident of Dadhola village in the district; Jitendera (28), a resident of Jorasi village; Kundan (45), a resident of Dinanath Colony in Noorwala; Kamal (24) and Kamlesh (17), both residents of Chilkamor in Solan district of Himachal Pradesh.

Jagdeep Duhan, DSP (headquarters), said, “The incident took place around 2.45 am when these five persons were helping a canter driver near Jhatipur village on the National Highway-1 in the district”.

A canter (reg No. HP 63 A 2041) loaded with pomegranates was on its way to Himachal Pradesh from the Azaadpur Mandi, Delhi, he added.

Karan Singh, a resident of Solan district in Himachal Pradesh, was driving the canter. When they reached near Jhatipur village on the National Highway-1, the canter overturned after one of its tyres burst, he said.

Jitender, who was on the way to Model Town in the city on a motorbike with his colleague Ajay Kumar, a resident of Gharaunda, tried to help the canter driver. Kundan and Kuldeep, who were sitting at roadside Krishna Dhaba, also reached there, he said.

Meanwhile, a speeding oil tanker (reg No. GJ 12Z 4769) hit them directly. Two of them died on the spot while three were declared brought dead by doctors at a private hospital, he added.

A case has been registered against the tanker driver, who managed to escape, on a complaint by Ajay Kumar, said the DSP.

“The tanker was running at a high speed and it crushed all five persons, who were helping the canter driver on the National Highway-1, to death. The scene was terrifying. The body of one of the victims was badly tangled with the tyre of the tanker. I saved my life by jumping off the road,” said Ajay.

My colleague Jitender was working as a chef at a restaurant and we were on the way to our Model Town branch. He is survived by his wife and a child, he added.

Krishan Lal, father of deceased Kuldeep said, “My son was working as a labour at a factory near Krishna Dhaba. He was taking rest after duty while Kundan, head cook at the dhaba, was working”. Both reached there to help the canter driver but lost their lives, he added.

Kamal worked as the conductor of a fruit canter and his friend Kamlesh had come with him for a leisure trip but both died in a tragic accident, said a policeman.