Two dead, several injured in hit-and-run on Mitauli-Lakhimpur road

Two people, including a teenager, were killed when a reckless driver, allegedly in drunken state, ran over them with his SUV on the Mitauli-Lakhimpur road under Mitauli and Neemgaon police stations on Saturday evening.

The accident occurred between 7:30 pm and 8 pm when an SUV rammed into a bike in Mitauli town. Rachit Kumar, also known as Prince (15), died on the spot and his grandmother Ramshri was seriously injured. Rachit was taking his grandmother to her house in Rasoolpur village on a bike.

After the first accident, the driver sped away and hit another cyclist named Jagjeevan from Bamhanabad village about a kilometre from the first accident site.

The driver fled the scene of the accident again and rammed a motorcycle carrying two people, Shyam Narayan and Golu, in the Neemgaon police district. Shyam Narayan died on the spot.

Several other persons were injured in the accidents, two of them are in critical condition. They have been taken to the district hospital while others are receiving medical treatment at the Mitauli health centre, said District Magistrate Vineet Upadhyay.

Angry villagers stopped the SUV and pulled the driver out of the vehicle. According to witnesses, the driver appeared to be heavily intoxicated.

The driver was arrested after the accident.

Chief Development Officer (CDO) Anil Singh and SP Ganesh Prasad Saha rushed to the scene and arranged medical assistance for the injured.

Two of the seriously injured, Ramshri and Jagjeevan, were later admitted to the district hospital. Due to their serious condition, they were shifted to Lucknow.

Kheri District Magistrate Mahendra Bahadur Singh visited the district hospital and spoke to the bereaved family members, expressed his condolences and assured them of all possible medical assistance.