A 12-year-old boy was killed on the spot and his father was injured when a speeding water tanker knocked down their scooter and ran over the boy’s head on Panathur main road on Thursday.
The deceased, Bhavanth, was a Class 7 student of Patel Public School in Bellandur, and a resident of Boganahalli near Kempamma Temple. Bhavanth’s father Muniraju B, a businessman, was dropping his son for tuitions in Panathur, the police said.
According to the police, the accident happened around 4.20 pm near Vibgyor school opposite Blue Dart couriers in Southeast Bengaluru. It was raining as their scooter reached Vibgyor school. The speeding tanker heading from Boganahalli towards Kadubeesanahalli knocked down the scooter.
Muniraju fell to the right while Bhavanth, riding pillion, fell to the left and under the front wheel of the tanker which ran over him, killing him instantly. The wailing father, with the help of a few passers-by, rushed Bhavanth to a hospital nearby where he was declared brought dead.
Meanwhile, the tanker driver who is said to be from Assam, abandoned the vehicle and fled from the spot fearing public wrath.
Old Airport traffic police rushed to the spot and seized the tanker.
They have booked the driver under IPC sections 304-A — causing accidental death due to rash and negligent driving, 279 — rash driving or riding on a public way along with sections under Indian Motor Vehicles (IMV) Act for not helping and taking the victim to hospital and not intimating the police about the accident.
“We are on the lookout for the absconding driver who will be nabbed within 24 hours to ascertain if he was drunk,” said a senior police officer.
DH had reported about the perils of reckless driving of tankers on the narrow stretch in its August 5 edition.
The residents’ welfare associations (RWAs) and apartment dwellers along the stretch had expressed concern over the plying of tankers and demanded that the traffic police enforce a ban on tankers along the stretch.
The corporator and other local officials who visited the spot after the DH report, had assured the residents that their concerns will be addressed.