Actor-politician Nandamuri Harikrishna, who died in a fatal car accident on Wednesday, was driving at high speed and was not wearing a seat belt, say the Telangana police. The actor and son of former Chief Minister NT Rama Rao, who was a polit-bureau member of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Rajya MP Sabha, succumbed to injuries in a road accident which took place in Narketpally area of Nalgonda district on Wednesday morning. Though he was rushed to a private hospital, he couldn’t be saved as he had suffered critical injuries to his head.
Nalgonda Superintendent of Police AV Ranganath has since told the media that the actor hit a divider, which resulted in the car door, breaking open and flinging him out.
The SP told NDTV, “Had he used a seat belt, probably the impact would have been less and he could have survived. According to the other passengers in the car, he did not wear a seat belt and was also driving at high speed.”
The actor’s vehicle was speeding at 160 kmph, according to police. The accident took place when Harikrishna and two others were on their way to Nellore to attend a wedding. The accident took place at around 6.15 am.
The actor’s vehicle hit the divider after losing control of the vehicle and then hit an oncoming car from the opposite direction.
The SP also expressed surprise over the non-deployment of airbags which probably could have saved the actor-politician.
“We could not find any evidence of sudden braking. We are also surprised at the nature of injuries sustained by Harikrishna. Usually in such accidents we see compression injuries but not to the head as was the case,” he told Telangana Today.
While Harikrishna, who was driving the vehicle succumbed, two others accompanying him escaped with minor injuries.
Victims, who suffered minor injuries in the other car, told reporters that they noticed Harikrishna’s vehicle flying in the air. The driver said that he immediately veered towards the left after noticing the car coming towards them and thereby avoided the full impact of the collision.
Meanwhile, the actor-politician will be given state honours. After a procession, the funeral will be held at 4 pm in Mahaprasthanam, Jubilee Hills.