Five people, including four students, died when the car in which they were travelling rammed a KSRTC bus at Sankenahalli Cross near Belur taluk on Tuesday afternoon. The four students and their friend were on the way to Hassan from Belur, when their car collided with the bus heading to Chikkamagaluru.
The deceased have been identified as Akmal Khan, Mohammed Jilani, II PU students of Vidya Vikas College in Belur, Syed Hassan Moyin, Rehan, degree students in Hassan, and their friend Mohammed Kaif. All, in the age group of 18 to 20, were childhood friends and residents of J.P. Nagar in Belur.
Akmal Khan and Mohammed Jilani had written the preparatory examination on the day. Soon after completing the examination, they were joined by the other friends. They left for Hassan in Mohammed Kaif’s car around 1 p.m. Within a few minutes, they met with the accident on the outskirts of the town. Kaif, who was driving the car, lost control while negotiating a deep curve and rammed into the bus coming from the opposite side.
Four people died on the spot, while Akmal Khan succumbed to injuries on the way to the hospital. As the car was moving at high speed, half of it was crushed. The police and the local people had difficulty in recovering the bodies from the mangled car. A couple of passengers on the bus also suffered minor injuries.
Father caught unaware
Vazihur Rahman, father of Mohammed Jilani, who earns his living by running an autorickshaw, was on the same route to drop a customer when the accident occurred. He stopped his three-wheeler and rushed to the spot to extend help to the victims, unaware of the fact that his son was one among the dead.
When he saw his son in college uniform dead, he collapsed. The local people were seen consoling him. Later, speaking to the media, Rahman said his son had told him that he would be going to Hassan with his friends to purchase some books. His elder son had suffered serious injuries in an accident last year and he had spent a huge sum on his treatment. “But Jilani did not give me a chance to save him,” he said with tears.
The dead bodies were shifted to the government hospital in Belur. Hundreds of friends and relatives of the students gathered. The Belur police have registered a case.
Additional Superintendent of Police B.N. Nandini, who visited the spot, told the media that it was not yet clear how the accident took place. “As of now, we know that a car and a KSRTC bus collided, resulting in the death of five people. The police will investigate the case and only after a thorough investigation, we will know who was responsible for the accident,” she said.
M.M. Ramesh, principal of Vidya Vikas PU College in Belur, said that Akmal and Jilani had taken the preparatory examination before leaving the college on the day. “Both were good students. They were in the college up to 12.30 p.m. and met with the accident within an hour. We are all shocked to hear this,” he told the media.
