Ten persons sustained injuries after the Tempo Traveller in which they were sitting rolled back into a roadside ditch at Pammancode, near Pappanamcode, here on Wednesday.
The traffic police said the driver of the van had left the engine running and in neutral gear, but without applying the handbrake as he got off the vehicle which was stopped for checking by the Nemom police around 10.15 a.m. The van rolled into the ditch. The passengers, who were administered first aid at a private hospital, have been shifted to the Government Medical College, where their condition was stated to be stable.
The incident, however, sparked a controversy, with local people accusing the police of stopping the vehicle suddenly.
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V. Sivankutty, MLA, alleged that the police had “jumped onto the road, taking the driver by surprise, causing him to lose control of the van.”
City Police Commissioner H. Venkatesh denied this and said the driver had stopped the vehicle, and got down, leaving the engine running but without applying the handbrake.
A case has been registered and an investigation is on.
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Driver had gone out without applying handbrake.