Four persons were killed and three others sustained serious injuries in a fatal road accident that took place at Habibpur in Malda late on Tuesday night.
Police said that the accident took place when the victims, who were all residents of Doklaghat, were returning home after attending a ceremony at an area situated around 20 km away from the village. The victims had hired a mini door van to go to attend the programme.
According to the police, the van in which the victims were travelling in hit one Dawood Murmu (40), a mentally challenged person who was crossing the road. The van lost control and hit another person indentified as Dijen Mondal, a local resident. Both the victims were declared brought dead after being taken to a hospital. After hitting two persons, the driver of the van sped up his vehicle in fear of being caught. While fleeing from spot, the driver lost control over the vehicle and it eventually rammed into a roadside tree.
Two persons including the driver of the vehicle received critical injuries in the accident. After being attracted by a loud thud, the local residents rushed to the spot and rescued the injured persons from the vehicle the frontal portion of which was damaged in the accident. The two sitting inside the car, Shibu Hansda and Shyamlal Murmu were rushed to the Malda Medical College and Hospital where the doctors pronounced them brought dead. Three other passengers who were sitting on the rear seats of the vehicle also suffered injuries and are undergoing treatment at the hospital. Some of them are stated to be in a serious condition.
According to the preliminary investigation, police suspect that the vehicle was at a high speed when it hit two persons one after the other. The local residents alleged that vehicles often ply at a top speed during night flouting traffic norms that often lead to fatal road accidents. Police have started a probe in this regard.