In a tragic accident, a 59-year-old man, a former service man in the army who was working as a security guard, was mowed down by a drunk driver in Chennai's Nungambakkam area. The accident took place on Friday morning and Mannarsamy, 59, died on the spot.
According to one report in the Times of India, a 23-year-old real estate businessman, Poonam Kiran Raj, was behind the wheel. He was reportedly heading towards Valluvar Kottam when he fatally knocked down Mannarsamy. Mannarsamy worked as a security guard at the Metro Water pumping station. He had retired as a service man five years earlier and had been living with his son in Choolaimedu.
Police told The New Indian Express that Mannarsamy was on his way to buy tea at 6 am near the pumping station. He was crossing the road when the car driven by the businessman knocked him over as he reportedly tried move out of the way. The car then came to a stop after it collided with a tree. Four other men were also reportedly in the car, an SUV, at the time.
According to ToI, witnesses at the spot reportedly told the police that the driver drove in a rash manner. The police officers, who arrived on the scene from the Pondy Bazaar police station, confirmed that the driver was drunk at the time. As per the report, matters escalated between the men in the car and the public when they got into an argument after which one of the men allegedly threw an iron rod at the public gathered around the vehicle.
Mannarsamy was rushed to the Government Royapettah Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival, according to the report. Meanwhile, Kiran Raj has reportedly been booked under Indian Penal Code Section 304 (Punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder) as well as rash driving and causing death due to negligence.