Bengaluru: A 20-year-old man was killed and five others were seriously injured after a tempo traveller overturned near Mahadeshwara Temple along the Outer Ring Road in Annapoorneshwari Nagar in the early hours of Sunday. Police said the vehicle skidded and overturned, while people at the scene alleged that its driver may have lost control while trying to avoid motorcycles performing wheelies.
The deceased was identified as Manoj Kumar, who was seated beside the driver. The driver, identified as Ravi, also suffered serious injuries, including a fracture.
The accident occurred around 1 am, according to Jnanabharathi traffic police. The tempo traveller was carrying six people and had started from Laggere for a trip when the crash occurred.
Police said an investigation is underway to establish the exact circumstances that led to the accident.
TT hits electricity pole before overturning
According to the preliminary police investigation, the tempo traveller skidded and overturned. However, people who gathered at the spot gave a different account of the sequence of events.
They alleged that a group of youths had been performing motorcycle wheelies on the road shortly before the crash. According to the claims made by those at the scene, the TT driver attempted to avoid the motorcycles, after which he lost control of the vehicle.
The tempo traveller allegedly hit an electricity pole before overturning.
The allegation regarding motorcycle wheeling has not been established by the police investigation. Officers are examining the circumstances surrounding the crash, including the claims made by people who were present at the spot. Local reporting also said police have registered a case and are looking into the wheeling allegations.
Five people seriously injured
Manoj Kumar died in the accident, while the driver and four other occupants sustained injuries. Ravi suffered serious injuries, including a fracture.
The injured were taken to hospital for treatment. Police said Manoj Kumar’s body was shifted for post-mortem examination.
Local residents, however, alleged that emergency medical assistance was delayed by nearly an hour. They claimed that bystanders and friends of the injured eventually helped transport the victims to a hospital in a private car.
The allegation about the delay in emergency assistance is also being raised by local residents and has not been independently established by the police.
Residents raise concerns over late-night wheeling
The accident has renewed concerns among residents about motorcycle wheeling on Bengaluru roads, particularly during late-night hours.
Residents urged the Bengaluru police to intensify enforcement against dangerous riding practices and take action against groups allegedly performing wheelies on busy roads.
The issue has also become part of broader road-safety concerns in Bengaluru. The traffic police have recently introduced restrictions on several major flyovers and elevated corridors, citing accident risks, traffic congestion and the need to improve road safety.
For the Annapoorneshwari Nagar crash, however, police are yet to establish whether motorcycles performing wheelies played any role in the accident.
Three crashes reported on the Outer Ring Road stretch
The TT crash was one of three accidents reported along a roughly 500-metre stretch of the Outer Ring Road late on Saturday night and early Sunday.
The other two accidents resulted in injuries but did not report fatalities.
In the second incident, a food truck was involved in a collision after a private bus allegedly rammed into it from behind. The food truck was reportedly being used to deliver breakfast to an apartment complex in the area when the collision occurred.
The third accident took place near the Vijayanetra underpass, where a Canter collided with a wall on the upper portion of the underpass.
The impact damaged the concrete barriers, with broken sections falling onto the road below. Police said no one was travelling underneath the bridge at the time, preventing what could have been a more serious accident.
Police investigate exact cause
The Jnanabharathi traffic police are examining the circumstances surrounding the tempo traveller crash. Investigators are also looking into the allegations that the driver was attempting to avoid motorcycles performing wheelies.
At this stage, police have described the vehicle skidding and overturning as the preliminary cause of the crash. The more specific claim that wheelies by motorcyclists forced the driver to take evasive action remains under investigation.
The accident highlights the potential consequences of dangerous riding on busy city roads, but any responsibility for the crash will depend on the findings of the police investigation.
With one person dead and five others seriously injured, the case has also prompted renewed calls from residents for stronger enforcement against motorcycle wheeling and other dangerous road behaviour in Bengaluru.