Dehradun accident: How an after-party drive turned deadly for six Uttarakhand youngsters

Five of the victims were from Dehradun, while one hailed from Chamba.

Six youngsters, including three women, lost their lives and one person is critically injured as their speeding MUV crashed into a container truck near ONGC Chowk in Dehradun.

The car, a newly purchased Innova, was reduced to a mangled wreck after it rammed into the truck from behind and left six dead on the spot, Circle Officer (City) Neeraj Semwal said.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, who was on a visit to Uttarkashi and Rudraprayag, expressed grief at the loss of lives in the accident. “The news of the death of six youths in a road accident in Dehradun is extremely heart-rending. I pray to God to grant the departed souls a place at his sacred feet and give strength to the bereaved families to bear the immense pain,” he said.

The deceased students were identified as Kunal Kukreja (23), Atul Agrawal (24), Rishabh Jain (24), Navya Goel (23), Kamakshi (20), and Guneet (19).

All of them were from Uttarakhand’s Dehradun except Kukreja who hails from Himachal Pradesh, PTI reported. The seventh occupant – Siddhesh Agrawal (25) – has been admitted to the Synergy Hospital in the city and is in a critical condition. According reports, the Uttarakhand, police are waiting for the sole survivor to regain consciousness.

What happened?

The involved car belonged to a Saharanpur-based firecracker businessman, Sunil Agarwal, who had recently bought the vehicle just days earlier on Dhanteras festival. His son, Atul, had travelled to Dehradun along with six friends and was driving the vehicle at the time of the accident, according to PTI.

According to reports, Atul’s friend demanded a party since he bought a new car.  Atul hosted a party on Monday night at Siddhesh Agarwal’s home in Jakhan.  Atul then headed for a drive with his friend.

CCTV footage revealed the MUV initially driving at a moderate speed through checkpoints but accelerating sharply just before the crash near the ONGC intersection. Inspector KC Bhatt from the Cantt police station, who is heading the probe, told Times of India. The MUV was likely a new vehicle as it was without number plates.

According to Bhatt, a luxury car overtook them at high speed, and this prompted the MUV driver also to accelerate in an attempt to catch up. During this time, a container truck was also crossing the intersection at a normal pace, resulting in the collision.

"Driver of the MUV misjudged the timing, thinking they could also cross the intersection before the truck, which was heading towards Kaulagarh from Kishangarh Chowk, had passed. As a result, the speeding MUV collided with the truck's left side from behind," the police said as quoted by TOI.

In the accident, the heads of two youngsters were severed from their bodies as the roof of the car broke.  “Since the MUV’s driver, who owned the vehicle, did not survive, we are looking into legal alternatives as no charges can be filed posthumously,” Bhatt told TOI.