New Delhi: A 20-year-old woman was killed in Delhi after her scooter was hit by a car and she was dragged by the vehicle for almost 4 km — from Sultanpuri to Kanjhawala — in the early hours of Sunday.
Police said the woman’s body was found almost an hour later. Five men travelling in the Maruti Baleno car have been arrested under sections 279 (rash driving), 304 A (causing death by negligence),
304 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and section 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the IPC, they said.
According to the police, the woman, Anjali Singh, was an event organiser and returning from work at the time.
DCP (outer Delhi district) Harendra Singh said, “A PCR call was received at 3.24 am at Kanjhawala police station in Rohini district. The caller said a body was being dragged by a grey Baleno. The caller provided a part of the registration number. Staff deployed at pickets were alerted and a message was flashed to look for the vehicle. At 4.11 am, a PCR call was again received at Kanjhawala police station which said a woman’s body was lying on the road. It was sent to the Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital, Mangolpuri.”
The five arrested have been identified as Deepak Khanna (26), who drives a Gramin Sewa auto; Amit Khanna (25), who works for a nationalised bank in Uttam Nagar; Krishan (27), who worked at the Spanish Culture Centre in Connaught Place; Mithun (26), a hairdresser at a salon; and Manoj Mittal (27), a ration dealer in Sultanpuri.
The woman’s mangled scooter was found by the station house officer of Sultanpuri Police Station during a night patrol around 3:53 am. Her body was found lying on the road near the Kanjhawala Police Station, situated around four kilometres away.
During questioning, the accused told the police that they had gone to Murthal on New Year’s Eve but returned soon because it was crowded.
“They said they were on their way back when the car hit the scooter. They claimed that they thought the woman had got up after the accident and left. The driver claimed the lane was narrow, which led to the accident,” the police said.
“Spot inspection as well as physical remains on the spot revealed that after the accident, the victim got entangled in the wheels and was dragged for quite some distance. However, the investigation is still underway and all aspects of the matter are being taken into consideration,” the police added.
Forensic experts have also been involved to examine the scene of the crime, and to collect all relevant physical, biological and other evidence “which will ensure successful prosecution”, the Delhi Police Outer District said.