Vadodara Car Crash: Accused Rakshit Ravish says he wasn’t drunk, blames potholes: ‘Vision was hampered…’

Vadodara Car Crash: A woman was killed instantly, and four others were injured when a speeding car, driven by a 20-year-old law student, collided with their two-wheelers in Vadodara city, Gujarat, in the early hours of Friday, according to the police.

The incident took place around 12:30 am near Muktanand Cross Roads in the Karelibaug area. Following the crash, the driver, Rakshit Chaurasiya, was arrested, as confirmed by Deputy Commissioner of Police Panna Momaya, PTI reported.

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It could be a case of drunk driving as eyewitnesses, who caught Chaurasiya at the scene, told the police that he appeared intoxicated and was screaming “another round, another round” after coming out of the car, the official said.

The deceased woman has been identified as Hemali Patel, who was riding her scooter at the time of the accident.

Chaurasiya, who originally hails from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, is a law student and lives in a PG accommodation here, Momaya told reporters.

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“The car belonged to his friend Mit Chauhan, who was sitting in the co-driver’s seat when Chaurasiya rammed the car into some two-wheelers at full speed while going towards Muktanand circle,” she said.

Here's what accused said about accident

Accused Rakshit Ravish Chaurasia claimed, “ We were going ahead of the scooty, we were turning right and there was a pothole on the road. There was a scooty and a car while we were turning right... The car slightly touched the other vehicle and the airbag opened suddenly, our vision was hampered and the car went out of control."

He added, “We were going at 50 km/hour. There were no people at that time, just a scooter and a car...I had no idea. I did not do any party, I went for Holika Dahan and was not drunk... Today, I was told that one woman has died and a few have sustained injuries. I want to meet the family of the victims, it is my fault and whatever they want that should happen…”

In CCTV footage accessed by media, the speeding car can be seen hitting two scooters, knocking down the riders and dragging them along before coming to a halt.

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“Primarily, the car was overspeeding. This can also be a case of drunk driving. We will conduct his medical test to determine whether he was under the influence of alcohol,” said DCP, adding that Chaurasiya does have a driving licence.

Vadodara Police Commissioner Narasimha Komar said, “...Three other vehicles - two active vehicles, electric vehicle (EV) apart from a four-wheeler, are involved in the incident...Eight people were injured and a woman has died. Multiple investigative teams are investigating the incident...The teams are recovering the evidence from the scene of the crime. Police are tracking the entire movement of the driver and co-passenger of the four-wheeler...The person driving the four-wheeler is in police custody and police have been successful in tracking the movement of the co-passenger...Further investigation is underway…”

In a video captured by an eyewitness, Chauhan comes out of the car, with a wrecked front portion, and starts blaming Chaurasiya for the crash.

Chaurasiya, who appears incoherent, keeps shouting, “Another round? Another round?”. The video shows Chaurasiya getting thrashed by bystanders, who subsequently handed him over to the police.

(This is a developing story)