Minor boy rams car into auto, kills driver; father likely to face action

Bengaluru, Sept 21: A 15-year-old boy, speeding in his father's car, crashed into a stationary autorickshaw, killing the driver and critically injuring another man in the vehicle, in north Bengaluru on Friday.

Police are likely to take action against the Class X student's father, a resident of Mathikere, for allowing a minor to drive the vehicle. They seized both vehicles.

Autorickshaw driver VC Nagaraj, 47, of Patelappa Layout in Nagashettihalli, died in the accident. Nathan Lourdes, 68, of Basappa Layout in Nagashettihalli, is being treated at MS Ramaiah Hospital, where doctors said his condition was critical.

Police detained the boy and sent him to a juvenile home on Friday night.

The crash occurred around 1.30pm when the boy, driving a Maruti Swift, entered Kalpana Chawla Road in Bhoopasandra and stepped on the accelerator.

The road is wide and that may have tempted the boy to go fast,” an investigating officer said. “His vehicle careened to the side of the road and rammed a parked autorickhaw (KA04 AA 3298).”

The father, a marketing manager with a software firm, could face action for negligence in handing over the car to his only son after police produce the boy before a special juvenile court on Saturday with documents to prove his age. “If the court is convinced that he is a minor, we will book a case against his father under IPC sections 279 (rash or negligent driving) and 304A (causing death by negligence),” an officer said.

MK Anand, a witness, said many autorickshaws were parked on both sides of the road at the time. “Pushcart vendors sell food on the road in the afternoon and auto drivers, security guards and others drop by for lunch. There’s usually a big crowd between 2pm and 3 pm. If the accident took place an hour later, there may have been more casualties.”

 Nagaraj and his friend Lourdes, a retiree, were in Nagaraj’s auto when the car crashed into it, said Anand and another witness Imran Pasha. A mob tried to pull the boy out of the car, when police arrived. “We reached the spot and moved the boy to a patrol vehicle,” another police officer said.

Nagaraj is survived by an only son Chetan, a BCom student, and his wife Mala, who works in a private school.