Four young men were killed and three others injured after their SUV collided with a goods truck and a tempo on the Pune-Bangalore Highway at Karad in Maharashtra’s Satara district on Tuesday night, police said. The group was returning to Satara after visiting the Kolhapur Mahalaxmi temple when the crash occurred on the Pune-bound carriageway.
The accident took place at around 10.30 pm on the flyover in front of Sugam Lodge in Karad town. According to the First Information Report, the SUV allegedly attempted to overtake the goods truck from the left before hitting it from behind. The impact caused the vehicle to spin out of control, strike the protective railing on the left side of the flyover and then collide with a tempo travelling in the opposite direction.
The deceased were identified as SUV driver Tejas Deshmukh and his friends Sagar Nimbalkar, Suyash Chinchkar and Rohit Dhotre. All four were between 20 and 24 years old, and residents of Katarkhatav village in Khatav taluka of Satara district, police said.
The three other passengers, identified as Aman Tamboli, Ruturaj Duble and Shantanu Shingade, were injured and taken to Krishna Hospital in Karad for treatment. The collision damaged the SUV, goods truck and tempo, according to the police account.
The FIR was filed on the basis of a complaint submitted by the tempo driver. The complaint alleged that the SUV was being driven at high speed and negligently, without due regard to road conditions. The sequence described in the FIR places the initial impact during the attempted overtaking manoeuvre, followed by the loss of control and the collision with the tempo.
Karad City police registered a case on Wednesday under Sections 281, 106(1), and 125(a) and (b) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, as well as Section 184 of the Motor Vehicles Act. The provisions relate to rash driving, causing death by negligence and acts that endanger life or personal safety, among other offences.
Senior police officers visited the crash site after the incident. The investigation is examining the circumstances leading to the collision, including the alleged speed and manner of driving. Police said further details about the accident are awaited.
