Twenty-year-old Thasni Basheer, a civil engineering student at the College of Engineering in Thiruvananthapuram passed away late Thursday night owing to head injuries after she was mowed down by a jeep driven by other students in campus. The mishap happened on Wednesday as students took out a rally to celebrate Onam.
A yellow jeep driven by male students mowed down Thasni. Though initially the college reportedly believed that the accident was not serious, scan reports revealed that she had recieved serious injuries. The Sreekaryam police has registered murder cases against 12 students including a student named Baiju who was behind the wheel. The police however has not arrested anyone in the case, all the students are absconding.
"We have all details and evidence in the case. All the accused have been identified and will be arrested within three days. We have constituted a special team for the enquiry, a charge sheet will be prepared without leaving any loopholes," H Venkatesh, Commissioner of Police Thiruvananthapuram told TNM.
Many versions of same incident
According to the college Principal J David some hostel students went around the college in a jeep without permission. He told Asianet news that the girl student was part of the rally and was mowed down as there was a huge crowd around the jeep.
Police however say that college authorities were callous.
“The incident happened around 4 pm, but the college informed the police only around 8.30 pm. When we asked the college why there was a delay in notifying the police, they said they were under the impression that it was not a serious incident. This behavior by the college was suspicious,” Sreekaryam sub-inspector K Biju told The News Minute.
The girl’s parents have told the police that jeep was overcrowded and the boys were under the influence of alcohol. They insist that it was no accident, but the girl was deliberately mowed down.
Some news reports suggest that the girl was behind the jeep and the ‘accident’ happened as they reversed the vehicle.
Though some reports suggest that the jeep was overcrowded, exclusive pictures released by Reporter TV shows a yellow jeep with around six people on the jeep, two of whom are seated in the front. In one of the pictures, more people can be seen on the vehicle, though it is unclear if the vehicle was in motion when the pictures were taken. A yellow mini lorry with many students on it can be seen just behind the jeep.