Patna: The death toll in the road accident in Supaul district, in which a speeding car ran over people attending a ‘kirtan’ near a temple, rose to five on Wednesday after two more injured persons succumbed to their injuries during treatment. One other person remains in critical condition.The accident occurred on Tuesday night near Bajrangbali temple on NH-327E at Kataiya Chowk under Pipra police station. Around 30-35 people had gathered by the roadside for ‘bhajan’ and ‘kirtan’ as part of the Shravan Jhoolan festivities when a car, allegedly travelling at high speed, lost control and ploughed into the group. The driver fled after the crash, while angry locals caught the other occupants of the car.Three people died on the spot, while two others who were critically injured later succumbed to their injuries at the sadar hospital. The bodies were sent to the sadar hospital for the postmortem.The deceased were identified as Tilai Das, Raju Das, Surendra Yadav, Bhuvaneshwari Yadav alias Koyli Yadav and Krishna Mohan Sah. Another injured person is undergoing treatment at Madhepura Medical College and Hospital and is said to be in critical condition.Pipra police station SHO Kishore Kumar said the car was coming from the Pipra side and appeared to have swerved while trying to avoid a tractor. “It then ran over the people sitting near the road for ‘bhajan’ and ‘kirtan’ and crashed into a garage. The driver fled after the accident. Police rescued the other occupants, including a couple and their two children. Raids are being conducted to arrest the driver,” he said.The SHO added that the car was seized and an investigation was underway.Local MLA Ram Vilas Ram reached the spot and met the families of the victims. He described the incident as heartbreaking. Supaul district magistrate Sawan Kumar announced compensation of Rs4 lakh each for the families of those killed in the accident.
