A joyride in their fathers’ cars proved deadly for three Bengaluru teenagers. In the early hours of Sunday, three minor boys took their fathers’ cars out for a ride on the Elevated Flyover on Hosur Road.
According to a report by the Times of India, the boys were driving at a speed of 140 km per hour when their cars brushed against each other. The impact of the jolt led to a tragic accident where one of the minor boy’s head was severed.
The other two escaped miraculously. The deceased, Arfan, 17, was the son of a local businessman Saleem. The two other boys who escaped unhurt are Srinivas and Anirudh, both 16 years old. Their parents Govindaraju and Krishamurthy are IT professionals in reputed companies.
According to the police, Arfan and Srinivas are classmates studying at an international school. They were residents of Devarachikkanahalli, while their friend Anirudh is a resident of HSR Layout.
Upon questioning the two boys who survived, it was revealed that the trio went on joyrides often. On Sundaytoo, the boys took their fathers’ cars – an Innova, a Swift Dzire and a Skoda - without the knowledge of their parents and went on a drive around 12.30 am.
“The boys were descending the Elevated Flyover at Roopena Agrahara and all three cars brushed against each other, and they lost control due to the high speed of the vehicles. The Skoda car, which Arfan was driving, hit the median on the left side of road. Due to the impact, his head snapped from his body and he died instantly,” ACP Traffic R Hitendra said.
The Innova veered to the right, bounced off the median and hit a milk van coming from the opposite direction. Srinivas, who was driving the Innova survived with minor injuries. However, as the Innova car rammed into the milk van, it turned over and the axle broke. The driver and cleaner in the milk van escaped with minor injuries, he said.
Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) R Hitendra, DCP Abhishek Goyal and other senior officers visited the spot. A case of negligence has been filed against the two minor boys and the parents of all three of them at the Madiwala police station.
Driving by Minors
In 2015, the High Court of Karnataka asked police to book parents for minors riding/driving as per a report in Bangalore Mirror. Under section 184, parents can be sent to jail for six months or fined up to Rs 1,000, or both.
In spite of police and regional transport offices (RTOs) becoming more strict about cracking down on under-age driving, many parents continue to allow minors to drive vehicles since it is seen as an indication of letting them be independent.
Hyderabad police had gone into an overdrive last year after an inebriated young man without a licence, ended up killing a small girl and her grandfather. More than 260 minors were caught driving in one day.