A speeding SUV ran over devotees heading towards Varadani Hanuman Mandir for Janmashtami celebrations in Telibagh market under PGI police station limits on Saturday night, leaving ten people injured, including two children.
Three of them are in critical condition at PGI Trauma Centre, police said.
A case under sections 109(1), 121(1), 121(2), 132, 281, and 324(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) has been registered at PGI police station. The accused, identified as Akshay Singh alias Sagar, son of Ramesh Singh and a resident of Hussainabad, was taken into custody, Lucknow Police confirmed in a press statement.
The incident occurred around 9 pm when the SUV, coming from the Cantonment side, hit devotees from behind. The injured include Anand Prakash Verma, his son Aarush, 9, another child, Yuvraj, and Rajesh. Rajesh’s wife Nagma, has lodged the complaint. Five others sustained minor injuries and were discharged after treatment.
The SUV carried a BJP flag, which police said is being probed to ascertain how it was placed on the vehicle and whether the accused has any political association.
Eyewitnesses told police that the driver tried to escape after the accident, ramming into vehicles and driving over a divider. The SUV was stopped after a police constable chased it on a motorcycle. The accused allegedly resisted arrest before being caught with the help of locals.
Police said Singh was allegedly under the influence of alcohol at the time of the incident and has eight criminal cases, including murder, loot and intimidation, registered in Lucknow, Barabanki and Rae Bareli.
CCTV footage surfaces
Hours after the incident, CCTV footage of the SUV running over people during the Janmashtami celebration surfaced and was widely shared on social media.
The one-minute-eighteen-second video, recorded on a camera installed at a nearby shop, shows the incident happening around 11:55 pm on Saturday.
In the footage, the SUV can be seen reversing at speed and hitting several people and objects on the road. Immediately after the collision, a crowd of people rushed toward the vehicle.
Moments later, the SUV moves forward and drives away in the same direction it came from, while more people run toward it.