A trip to Nandi Hills to celebrate a birthday ended in tragedy with the death of four persons and injuries to five others when an SUV collided with a van near Kannamangala Gate in Devanahalli on Wednesday morning.
The deceased — Sundar, 25, Venkatesh, 28, Satish, 24, and Vikas, 23 — worked as flower decorators and were residents of R.T. Nagar. “A group of nine friends were in the van. They were carrying cake and food for the birthday party,” said the police.
The SUV hit the van from behind. Four persons sitting in the back were killed on the spot. The van overturned, and five other passengers sustained multiple injuries.
Avinash, whose birthday they were going to celebrate, survived, but was severely injured. The other four injured passengers are Hemanth, Ajith, Ravi and Bharath. All of them are in a hospital.
According to the police, the SUV was being driven by a hotelier, identified as Manoj, who was travelling with his friend Madhu. “They survived as the SUV’s air bags opened on collision,” said the police.
A case has been registered against Madhu for causing death due to negligence. “We are waiting for medical reports to ascertain whether he was driving under the influence of alcohol,” said the police.
