18yrold falls off scooter, crushed by chartered bus
LAJPAT NAGAR ACCIDENT The civil services aspirant was on her way to coaching classes
18-year-old civil services aspirant was killed after she fell off her scooter and was mowed down by a chartered bus on the busy Moolchand flyover near Lajpat Nagar on Friday morning.
Police said the woman was riding down the flyover when her scooter skid and she was crushed under the front wheel of the bus moving behind her.
A senior police officer said Kajal Mandal was heading to attend computer classes at a coaching institute in Lajpat Nagar at around 9 am. The accident happened on the slope of the flyway going towards the Lajpat Nagar Metro station.
Eyewitnesses said that the bus, carrying employees of CGO Complex, and the scooter, were descending the flyover. The bus was moving behind the scooter at a high speed. Seeing the bus rushing towards her, the girl tried to go left. but the vehicle skid, eyewitnesses said.
“As she fell on the road, the bus ran over her head and chest, killing her on the spot. The driver tried to apply brakes. But the bus stopped only after crushing the woman,” said the officer. The driver along with some passengers in the bus and passersby rushed the girl to the Moolchand Hospital. However, doctors pronounced her dead on admission.
Her family lives at Sadiq Nagar in south Delhi. Kajal’s father, Sunil Mandal, is a contractual employee at the Japanese Embassy. Her mother, Poonam, works as a clerk in the defence ministry. Kajal was pursuing BA through correspondence from Delhi University, police said.
The errant driver, Hari Lal, was arrested and booked for rash and negligent driving causing death. During the interrogation, Lal said he wanted to overtake the scooter and take the middle lane. Unfortunately, the girl fell on her right coming under the bus.
“Lal claimed he slammed the brakes as soon as the girl fell. But as the bus was on the slope of the flyover, it did not halt immediately,” police said. Lal picked up employees of the CGO Complex from RK Puram and was to drop them to office by 10am.
Kajal’s family refused to believe the scooter skid without a reason. They said that she had been riding for the past few years. “Kajal wanted to pursue civil services and her parents were supporting her to achieve her goal. But their dreams are shattered now,” said a family member.