4 students die in high-speed car crash

Aman Sood

Patiala, May 18

Four students of Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law (RGNUL) were killed while two others suffered injuries when their speeding SUVs met with accidents in the wee hours on Saturday.

Till the filing of this report, the police had not registered any case. Patiala SSP Varun Sharma said, “Family members of the victims have given in writing that they do not want any post-mortem examination to be conducted as they suspect no foul play in the incident.” Therefore, no post-mortem examination was conducted and the bodies were handed over to the families concerned, he added.

The deceased were identified as final-year law students Ishan Sood and Reet Kaur Virk and third-year students Kushagra Yadav and Ribhu Sehgal. The two injured students were Behleen Kaur and Dikshant. Reet Virk hails from Chandigarh and is the daughter of a former Army officer, while Ishan Sood is related to a former Chandigarh Mayor.

Sources say the two SUVs were being driven at high speed when the drivers lost control and the vehicles went off the road. “Prima facie, it does not look like a collision between the two vehicles,” sources maintain. “Whether or not they were racing is a matter of investigation as the incident took place around 2 am,” they said.

The ill-fated Ford Endeavour entered a nearby field and crashed into a tree following which the four occupants got stuck inside it. “The impact was so strong that the four occupants were killed inside the vehicle despite the police and villagers reaching the spot within a few minutes,” said a senior police officer.

Seconds after the first crash, another SUV crashed into a wall nearby along the same Bhadson road, injuring two occupants. They were admitted to a private hospital for treatment.

SHO of the Bakhshiwala police station Ajay Kumar said they were yet to record the statements of the injured. “We are not sure if the students were returning after a dinner party. We will look into that,” he said.

“The parents of two victims have decided to donate their organs,” said the Patiala SSP.

Despite repeated attempts, the RGNUL authorities refused to comment on the issue. RGNUL PRO only said “a condolence meeting was held” on the university campus in memory of the victims.

Meanwhile, the police said they would gather details about hotels and restaurants in Patiala that serve liquor to students and a “strict action will be initiated”.

“If it comes to my notice that liquor is sold to underage persons, action will be initiated,” the SSP said.