Three people died and two other suffered injuries after being hit by a vehicle of Madhepura district magistrate (DM) in Bihar's Madhubani. However, Madhepura DM Vijay Prakash Meena was not in the vehicle at the time of the accident, which happened on National Highway 57 near Purwari Tola under Phulparas police station.
The deceased have been identified as Gudiya Kumari (age 35 years), her five-year-old daughter and an NHAI employee who was working on the highway. The deaths have been confirmed by Madhubani DM Arvind Kumar.
The injured have been identified as Ashok Kumar Singh and Rajesh Kumar Singh -- NHAI workers from Rajasthan -- and are undergoing treatment at Darbhanga Medical College and Hospital.
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The vehicle was going towrds Darbhanga when it first rammed into a woman and her child before hitting the labourers who were carrying out road maintenance work. The vehicle then crashed into a roadside railing.
Madhubani superintendent of police Sushil Kumar cited eyewitnesses as saying that the car was speeding and abruptly swerved to avoid a group of people crossing the road, a report in PTI said.
"The occupants fled the spot abandoning the vehicle. Apparently, the car was heading towards Darbhanga," Kumar told PTI. Kumar further said an FIR would be lodged and action would be taken against those responsible.
After the incident, locals started creating ruckus after blocking NH-57 and vandalised the car. The protesters also demanded service lanes on the highway and compensation for the victims family, IANS reported.
Following the accident, DSP of Phulparas and SDO reached the spot and took control of the situation. The highway has now been cleared for traffic.
NH-57 connects Delhi to Silliguri and passes through Lucknow, Gorakhpur, Darbhanga and Purnia. It is a four-lane stretch but does not have a service lane.
(Reported by Ajay Dhari Singh)