Samana accident: Parents of deceased children protest police 'inaction'

The alleged failure of the police in nabbing the person who owned the tipper truck that led to the death of seven schoolchildren in a road accident on May 7 triggered a protest in Samana. An indefinite dharna was started at Mata Rani Chowk, in front of the Tehsil Complex, on Friday.

The parents of children who died in the accident said that the police were not arresting the accused as the latter enjoyed political backing.

“It has been close to 25 days, but the culprits are still on the run. We are already devastated by the loss of our children. Our tears have not dried yet and we have been forced to sit on the road in pursuit of justice for our children. The police are giving these people ample opportunity to seek bail. If the accused involved in the hooch tragedy could be nabbed within a day, then why those involved in the killing of seven innocent children could not be arrested,” said a protesting parent.

Seven children aged between 6 and 12 years, four among them siblings, had died in the accident while they were returning home from school in Patiala. While five died on the spot, two succumbed to their injuries in hospital. The Innova ferrying them collided head-on with an over-speeding sand-laden tipper truck near Nassupur — a stretch now dubbed a “killer road.”

Investigations into the accident revealed alarming lapses. The Innova involved was carrying children nearly double its capacity — 13 children in a seven-seater. The deceased driver had previously been challaned for overspeeding in Chandigarh.

The truck ferrying sand was drivern by a 19-year-old who does not have a truck licence. The truck that struck the Innova had been involved in multiple other violations. The fitness certificate of the vehicle expired in January 2024 while the pollution certificate expired on July 5, 2023, insurance in January 2025 and tax was valid up to December 31, 2023.

Interestingly, it also had a pending challan issued by the RTA, Yamuna Nagar, in Haryana from December 28, 2022.

A case was registered against the accused tipper driver, Bhupinder Singh, of Train village in Pasyana and tipper owners, including Randhir Singh of Saman, Patiala, under section 105 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), with punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder. The police had earlier arrested the driver.

Today Patiala SP Palwinder Singh Cheema and DSP Amarinder Singh Tiwana reached the spot and efforts were made to persuade the parents and other residents of the town to lift the protest. They said that another accused Aniket Singh had also been arrested and the remaining accused would be arrested soon.

Farmer unions leaders also participated in the protest. The agitated parents made a fervent appeal for a social boycott of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Chetan Singh Jouramajra and market committee Chairman Balkar Singh Gajjumajra. The protesters accused the leaders of siding with the sand mafia and helping the accused tipper driver.

The students who died on the spot were Parv Sachdeva (12), Bhivanshi (11), Bhaviyam (8), Aradhya (10) and Sehaj Bansal (12), while Anshuman Bansal (6) and Krishan Bansal (6) died later during the treatment.