Doctor's Benz hits 5 vehicles, crashes into house; biker killed, 4 injured

Bengaluru, Mar 28: A speeding luxury car, driven by a 55-year-old doctor, rammed at least five vehicles over a stretch of 1 km and crashed into a house before coming to a halt in Jayanagar on Sunday. A two-wheeler rider was killed and four people were injured in the accident.

Around 2.15 pm, Dr Shankar N H (55), an Orthopaedician, was driving his high-end car. At Madhavan Park, he brushed past a car. Fearing repercussions, Shankar sped towards Byrasandra main road where his car rammed into a bike and two cars, injuring three people. Dr Shankar then sped ahead and rammed into Rizwan alias Ahmed Khan's (52) bike. The Benz came to a halt only after it ran into a roadside house, damaging it completely. Rizwan was killed on the spot, police said.

Swift action by the police saved orthopaedician Dr Shankar N H, who drove his Mercedes Benz car into three cars and two bikes, between Madhavan Park and Byrasandra in Jayanagar on Sunday afternoon, killing one and injuring three. The police secured Dr Shankar in the nick of time.

Lokesh Kumar, DCP (South), said that the police acted quickly and took away Dr Shankar from the spot and shifted him to a hospital, as he was bleeding from his ears. His domestic help Sarita and her child, who were also in the car, were taken to another hospital for treatment.

Around 20 policemen were sent to the spot to disperse the mob. If the police had reached the spot late even by a few minutes, the mob would have thrashed Dr Shankar and set his car on fire, the policemen told Deccan Herald.

The crowd turned a bit violent when Sarita re-appeared with her child at the scene for reasons unknown. A few of them pushed her, but the police took the woman and child to safety. Sarita told reporters that Dr Shankar had an epilepsy attack and lost control over the vehicle.

The airbags in the car saved the life of Shankar and Sarita. As soon as Shankar crashed his car into the house, the airbags opened up. Sampath Kumar, the owner of a grocery shop, said: “As I was coming from the Ashoka Pillar side, I noticed the driver of the Benz car driving in a reckless manner and thought that he would bang somewhere. When I reached Byrasandra, I noticed the damage.”

Almost a year ago, Shankar was booked under the Domestic Violence Act as his wife had approached the police, saying that he was harassing her for various reasons. The police had booked a case against him and even warned Shankar, said a senior police officer.

Family's fortuitous absence
The residents of the house in Byrasandra which was damaged were lucky that they were away when the accident happened.

Nagalakshmi, the owner of the house, said, “Our relatives Somashekar, his wife Rathnamma and their children reside in the house. On Sunday morning, they went to Mysuru as one of their relatives had delivered a baby. If they were in the house, the situation would have been different. Usually, Somashekar and his wife sell coconuts in front of the house and if they were present today, they may have been killed.”