Dumper truck mows down couple in Delhi

New Delhi: A 64-year-old motor mechanic and his wife were mowed down on Monday by a dumper truck in Northwest Delhi's Jahangir Puri, police said. The deceased were identified as Hukum Chand and Beena Devi (55), residents of Karan Vihar in Kirari, the police said.

The incident took place at around 6 am when Chand, his wife and their two children were returning Delhi from Himachal Pradesh, according to police.

"They got off the bus at a prepaid booth counter near the Outer Ring Road. When they were crossing the road, a dumper truck bearing a Haryana registration number hit them," said Vijayanta Arya, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Northwest).

Devi died on the spot and Hukam Chand succumbed to his injuries in the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (LNJP) Hospital. The truck driver fled the spot, leaving the vehicle behind, the officer said.

A case under section 279 (rash driving) and 304 A (causing death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code has been registered at Jahangir Puri police station, police said.

Chand was a motor mechanic and Devi was a housewife.

"We went to Mandi district in Himachal Pradesh and were returning to home along with my sister. We got down from the Haryana Roadways bus near prepaid booth. My parents were following me when I was crossing the road. Meanwhile, a speeding truck came there and fled after mowing them down," said Rakesh Kumar (33), the elder son of Chand.

The couple is survived by five children -- two sons and three daughters.

"The auto drivers, who were present in the area helped us. They made the truck driver to stop his vehicle and also took my parents to the hospital. My two sisters live in Delhi and one in Himachal," Kumar, who works in a bank, added.