Woman dies after car driven by Haryana cop runs her over

The victim was taken to the trauma centre of the Civil Hospital in Ambala City, where doctors declared her dead.

Ambala: A 24-year-old woman working in a private company in Gurugram was killed after a car allegedly driven at high speed by a police head constable rammed into her e-rickshaw, throwing her onto the road and crushing her, an officer said.

The incident took place on Wednesday evening near the Kali Paltan Bridge in Ambala Cantonment. The deceased was identified as Nikita Bajaj, he said.

According to police, Nikita had arrived in Ambala by train from Delhi along with her brother, Harsh Bajaj, on Wednesday. Around 8.30 pm, the siblings took an e-rickshaw from the Cantonment to Ambala City to attend a family function.

As the e-rickshaw was nearing Ambala City, a Honda City car allegedly driven at high speed by the head constable posted at Lalkurti Police Station hit it from behind. The impact caused the e-rickshaw to go out of control, throwing Nikita onto the road, after which the car ran over her.

She was taken to the trauma centre of the Civil Hospital in Ambala City, where doctors declared her dead.

E-rickshaw driver Ravinder Singh told reporters that he had picked up four passengers from the bus terminus and was heading towards Ambala City when the car struck him from behind.

"The car was being driven by a policeman at high speed. As a result of the impact, the woman fell on the road, and the car being driven by the policeman ran over her," he said.

Singh said some locals gathered at the spot, caught the driver and handed him over to police.

Some eyewitnesses and kin of the woman alleged that the cop was in an inebriated condition at the time of the accident and accused police of trying to shield their colleague.

Nikita's father, Jaspal Bajaj, demanded strict legal action and a fair probe, alleging negligence on the part of the accused.

Tension prevailed at the hospital's trauma centre till late at night as relatives and others staged a protest, demanding that the medical examination of the accused be conducted in the presence of the media. Additional police personnel were deployed to bring the situation under control.

Police said the allegations are being examined and the matter is under investigation. A post-mortem examination of the deceased will be conducted on Thursday.

According to Nikita's family, she had been working in Gurugram for the last four years, while her brother is employed as a supervisor at a hotel in New Delhi.