Ludhiana: A high-speed crossover accident on this city’s Ferozepur highway left two men dead and several others injured on Wednesday afternoon after a mechanical failure sent a vehicle careening into oncoming traffic.The collision occurred near the Mandiyani bridge, close to the Chowkiman Toll Plaza, when a Maruti Ritz travelling toward Ludhiana suffered a tyre burst. The blowout caused the driver to lose control, mounting the central divider and overturning directly onto a Maruti Swift heading in the opposite direction toward Moga.The impact killed two cousins, identified as Shafideen and Siraju, both residents of Tajpur Road, Ludhiana. They were travelling with three others to attend a memorial ritual (bhog) at the time of the crash. Emergency responders from the Sadak Suraksha Force (SSF) and toll plaza ambulances described a gruesome scene, with both vehicles reduced to mangled heaps of metal.Shafideen died on the scene after being trapped in the wreckage, while Siraju succumbed to his injuries after being shifted to the civil hospital in Ludhiana. Three other occupants of the Swift — Laldeen, Mama Hussain, and Shanu— sustained injuries and are receiving treatment. The driver of the Ritz, Jaswinder Singh, and his passenger, Devkaran Singh, were reportedly on way to a hospital to visit a relative when the accident occurred. Both survived with what police described as minor injuries.Hospital TensionsThe tragedy was followed by a brief period of unrest at the the civil hospital. Medical staff alleged that a group accompanying the deceased had attempted to forcibly remove a body before legal formalities were completed, leading to reports of manhandling of hospital personnel. Police officials have been deployed to the facility to restore order and investigate the claims of professional misconduct against the staff.Inspector Kuljinder Singh, station house officer (SHO) of the Dakha police station, confirmed that a formal investigation was pending. “Necessary legal action will be initiated once formal statements are recorded,” he said. Police authorities are currently focusing on the mechanical failure of the tyre as the primary cause of the crossover.
