In a hit-and-run case, four persons, including three women, were killed on the spot and five others were injured when the autorickshaw they were travelling in was hit by an unknown vehicle at Mekalagandi village in Gudihathnoor mandal of Adilabad district in the early hours of Saturday.
The incident took place at an accident-prone spot near Mekalagandi on National Highway 44, sources said. The autorickshaw was heading towards Adilabad from Ichoda when an unidentified vehicle rammed it reportedly at a high speed. The autorickshaw plunged into a side drain abutting the highway, resulting in the instantaneous death of four occupants of the autorickshaw.
Five other occupants of the three-wheeler, including four children, reportedly sustained serious injuries. The victims were identified as Pochanna, 60, autorickshaw driver, his wife Gangu, 55, their daughter Sailaja, 38, and a close relative, hailing from Shanthinagar in Adilabad.
Sources said that they were returning to Adilabad from a church in Ichoda, where they attended a religious ceremony late in the night. All the five injured, including three in serious condition, were shifted to a hospital in Adilabad. Local police inspected the accident spot and launched an investigation to track down the vehicle involved in the hit-and-run case.
