Bengaluru: Youth killed as Sandalwood AD rams speeding car into pedestrians

Mukesh was driving the Maruti Ignis car belonging to Sandalwood director Srinivas Thimmaiah

In a freak accident, a car ploughed through a group of pedestrians killing one of them and injuring three others, including a student, near Ittamadu on Friday morning.

An assistant director of Sandalwood was at the wheel of the car and the four pedestrians had stepped down the pavement as vehicles were parked on it. The accident happened at 7.30 am.

The driver of the car has been identified as Mukesh, a resident of Chennenahalli of Magadi Road. He is an assistant director in Sandalwood. Mukesh was driving the Maruti Ignis car bearing registration number KA--51-MK-5416 belonging to Sandalwood director Srinivas Thimmaiah.

Police said Thimmaiah and one more person were in the car. They were heading towards Ittamadu junction from Kathriguppe junction on Outer Ring Road in Banashankari. Mukesh lost control of the vehicle as he speeded in front of Chandan Motors near Udhbhava Hospital and hit four pedestrians walking on the roadside. He then hit a car and two two-wheelers parked on the footpath. The car then came to a halt.

The deceased has been identified as Rudrappa alias Suresh, 28, a native of Shivamogga. He was working in the catering sector. The injured are his colleagues Shivaram, 23, and Sachin, 21. Shailendra, a resident of Dwaraka Nagar in Hosakerehalli, is a final-year BSc student at a private college. The caterers were all residents of Kathriguppe. According to police sources, Shailendra has sustained severe injuries but is out of danger. All three injured are undergoing treatment in a private hospital.

Rudrappa was rushed to a nearby private hospital where he didn’t respond to treatment and breathed his last.

Kuldeep Kumar Jain, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic, West) said they have taken up a case against the driver under IPC Sections 304 A (causing death by negligence) and 279 (rash driving on public way) in the Banashankari traffic police station. The driver was subjected to the alcohol test and found to not be under the influence of alcohol.

'Tired after shooting'

Banashankari traffic police said the car was owned by Thimmaiah. Mukesh and Thimmaiah claimed that they were tired because they had been busy shooting through the previous night on the outskirts of the city. They were returning to their home after visiting a friend in Kathriguppe.

B R Ravikanthe Gowda, Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic), Bengaluru City, said they have been clearing vehicles parked on footpaths to make way for pedestrians.

“This must be done jointly by us and the BBMP. We will take action against vehicles and the BBMP will have to act against commercial establishments that have encroached the footpath and parked their vehicles there. On Thursday, we booked 450 cases on vehicles parked on the footpath across the city and cleared them."