Gurgaon: A birthday outing ended in tragedy in the early hours of Saturday when an SUV, allegedly being driven on the wrong side, slammed head-on into a scooter near a housing society in Sector 57, killing two young men.The two who died were Kartik Suresh (24), a student at a private university in the city, and Ritik, a Motihari resident who worked at a call centre in Sector 24 and also drove a bike taxi to augment his income.According to a complaint filed by Kartik’s father, Mathur Shankara Narayan Suresh, Kartik had left home on the evening of April 3 after telling his family he was going to a friend’s birthday party. Around 2.40 am on Saturday, he was on a scooter bearing registration number BR05AQ/7376, travelling from Boom Plaza via Dharmamarg Road towards Golf Course Extension Road.Police said Ritik was riding the scooter and Kartik was sitting on the pillion. However, there is ambiguity over whether Ritik was Kartik’s friend or whether Kartik had booked him as a bike taxi for a ride home from the party.Near Legend society in Sector 57, a Tata Harrier (UP16EF/4574) allegedly entered their lane from the opposite direction while being driven at high speed on the wrong side and ploughed into the scooter. The force of the collision threw both men onto the road, leaving them with severe head injuries.Passersby rushed to help. Ritik was taken in a private ambulance to Artemis Hospital. By the time police reached the spot, Kartik was still lying on the road. The cops shifted him to a local govt hospital. Both succumbed to injuries during treatment.Police said two mobile phones were found at the scene. “A call came on one of the phones from a contact saved as ‘AAMA’. We answered it and informed the caller, Kartik’s father, about the accident,” a police officer said.Narayan then rushed to the spot and identified his son from photographs shown by locals.Cops took photos of the damaged scooter and SUV before both vehicles were removed by a crane and taken to the police station. Ritik’s body was kept in a local mortuary for post-mortem, while Kartik’s body was handed over to his family after the autopsy on Saturday.An FIR was registered at Sector 56 police station under sections 281 (rash driving), 106 (causing death by negligence), 324(4) (mischief), and 125(b) (act endangering life or personal safety of others) of BNS.Investigating officer Deepak said the SUV had been impounded and its driver would be called to join the investigation. Till late on Saturday, no arrest had been made.In a separate accident, a 25-year-old man died after a truck hit his scooter on April 2 and fled the scene. Originally from Kannauj in UP, Salman Hossain worked as a vendor at a private company on Patherheri Road and lived nearby in a rented accommodation.His cousin Shahbaz told police he had accompanied Salman from his rented room around 1pm and got off on the way, while Salman continued towards work. Soon after, a truck coming from Bilaspur Chowk allegedly hit the scooter at high speed, throwing Salman onto the road. He was taken to a govt hospital, where doctors declared him dead.A case was registered at Bilaspur police station under sections 281 and 106 of the BNS after a formal complaint was submitted on Friday. Sub-inspector Ghanshyam said police had noted down the truck’s registration number, HR-47E-0802, and are trying to trace the driver.
