Delhi hit-and-run: Truck crushes 2 cousins returning from IPL match

NEW DELHI: Two cousins, aged 20 and 14, returning home on a bike from Monday night’s IPL match, became the city’s latest hit-and-run victims after being crushed to death by a truck in central Delhi’s Ashoka Road.The victims were identified as BSc student Yagya Bhatia and Abhav, residents of Ashok Nagar in west Delhi. Police said the two came under the truck’s wheels as the vehicle was turning into Ashoka Road at the Mahadev Road T-point. The truck drove away, leaving the two lying on the road.Ravi Bhatia, a relative, alleged that the victims lay on the road for at least 30 minutes without receiving any help from passersby. He said police were eventually informed and they took the two to hospital.According to family members, the accident took place at 10.30pm. Police received a PCR call at 11pm, after which a team reached the spot.Sachin, a family friend, claimed the truck was speeding when it hit the Bullet motorcycle. He added there was minimal visible damage to the bike but the riders were thrown under the truck.Friends and family members present at RML Hospital, where the postmortem was conducted, claimed they had not received any information about developments in the case, including whether the suspect had been identified.Police said after the collision, the truck was driven to northeast Delhi and the driver handed over the keys to the owner, from where it was seized. “The owner told us that the driver left after that. The truck was transporting construction debris,” police said.The site of the accident is a heavily secured area, close to Election Commission of India and police headquarters. The Parliament Street police station and the district DCP office are just a few metres away.Cops are checking CCTV footage to ascertain whether the cousins were wearing helmets.A friend of the Bhatias said that upon reaching the spot, they spoke to bystanders who reported hearing a loud noise and assumed a vehicle had hit a barricade. However, when they went to check, they found the bodies.A cop said raids are on in neighbouring states to trace the absconding driver.