JOIN USA youth was charred to death after his car caught fire and was completely destroyed at Chhawla in south-west Delhi on Saturday, police said.
Ashish Rathi, 22, of Daultabad village in Gurgaon, was driving towards Bado Sarai village in UP’s Barabanki district when his Maruti Swift car’s engine caught fire around 9:15 am. Within minutes, the fire had engulfed the entire car. He was alone in the car.
“His car had a central locking system, which malfunctioned when the engine caught fire. He was trapped inside the vehicle and was charred to death,” a police official said.
A passerby, who heard Ashish shouting for help, made a call to the police control room. But he could not help the victim as the car doors remained locked.
Fire department officials later managed to take him out and rushed him to a hospital. “However, doctors declared him dead upon arrival. He had suffered 100 per cent burn injuries,” the official added.
Ashish’s father Sukhbeer suspects that it was not an accident and he was killed over personal enmity.
Police have lodged a case and are investigating the allegations. “We will question Ashish’s friends and family as part of our probe,” the official added.