UP: 4 devotees killed as speeding car rams into tractor-trolley

Four devotees, returning from Baba Dham and Thawen after offering prayers, were killed when the car they were travelling in collided with a tractor-trolley in the Pateharwa Police Station area of the Kushinagar district, officials said on Sunday.

All the devotees in the car were residents of Siddharthnagar district, returning after visiting the Thawe Durga Temple located in Gopalganj, Bihar, on Sunday morning.

The deceased were identified as Manoj Kumar (village head, Phulpur), Sujit Jaiswal (village development officer, Mithwal block), Ramkaran Gupta (kanungo, Shohratgarh) and Kailash Mani Tripathi (teacher, Nagar Palika Parishad Siddharthnagar), all residents of Siddharthnagar district.

Two other individuals, Rajesh Sharma (the driver) and Sushant Sharma, also residents of Siddharthnagar, sustained injuries and are currently receiving treatment, the police said.

The accident occurred when the speeding car collided with a tractor-trolley on the four-lane highway near Baghi Kuti in the Pateharwa police station area.

Three devotees died at the scene and a fourth succumbed to injuries later, the police stated.

Upon receiving reports of the accident, police arrived at the location and worked with the locals to rescue the victims. The injured were transported to the nearby Community Health Centre (CHC) in Tamkuhiraj.

Tamkuhiraj Police Circle Officer (CO) Rakesh Pratap Singh confirmed that the collision occurred near Baghikuti and assured that legal action is being taken in the case.