The Jammu and Kashmir Police have formed multiple teams to find a 20-year-old engineering student who is absconding after allegedly trying to run over an elderly businessman, who was knocked down from his scooter, with his Thar SUV in the upmarket Gandhi Nagar area of Jammu on Sunday afternoon.
The incident, in which 68-year-old Kamal Dutt was seriously injured, was captured on CCTV and the clip has gone viral on social media.
Footage from the CCTV camera installed in the Green Belt Park area allegedly showed the accused, identified as Manan Anand, hitting Dutt’s scooter while overtaking another vehicle, causing Dutt to fall on the road. The accused then drives forward, and when Dutt stands up, he reverses the SUV onto Dutt, causing serious injury.
Subsequently, the accused is seen coming out of the SUV and standing over Dutt, who was lying unconscious on the road at this time, before getting back in the vehicle and driving away.
While the footage showed passersby watching the incident, none of them came to Dutt’s aid, and he was eventually taken to hospital by his family members who rushed to the spot after coming to know about the incident.
Dutt, who runs a vehicle spare parts shop, has been admitted to the ICU of the Government Medical College Hospital in serious condition.
Police said Manan Anand’s father, Rajinder Anand, has been detained as the vehicle was registered in his name. The vehicle has also been seized. Rajinder Anand, a resident of Nanak Nagar, works as a contractor with the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, officials said.
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According to police, the accused, who studies engineering from outside J&K, was initially booked under BNS sections 281 (rash and negligent driving) and 125(a) (endangering life or personal safety of others). However, after going through the CCTV footage of the incident, police also booked him for attempt to murder under section 109.
