Police have booked the driver of the container lorry that mowed down a Ganesh immersion procession at Mosale Hosahalli in Hassan district on the night of September 12. Nine people were killed, and over 20 were injured in the incident.
According to the FIR registered at Goruru police station, the accused, Bhuvanesh, was driving the lorry (MH-23 AU-3605) at high speed and in a negligent manner. He first hit a two-wheeler before jumping the road divider and ploughing into the crowd of devotees.
A complaint was filed by a man named Manjunath, who lost his 17-year-old nephew Eshwar in the tragedy. Eight people died on the spot, and several others sustained grievous injuries, according to the complaint. The driver was also injured in the incident and is currently under police custody while receiving medical treatment.
Police have booked the case under sections 281 (rash driving), 106 (causing death by negligence), and 125 (causing hurt by act endangering life) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Among the deceased are three students from the Mosale Hosahalli Government Engineering College identified as Mithun (21) from Chitradurga, Suresh (21) from Chikkamagaluru, and Praveen Kumar (22) from Ballari. Others killed include Rajesh (18), Eshwar (17), Gokul (17), Kumaraswamy (25), Praveen Kumar (25), and Prabhakar (51).
Sixteen of the injured are under treatment at Hassan Institute of Medical Sciences.