Car Showroom Owner Dies As Fortuner Rams Railing, Falls Into River In Bihar

A car showroom owner died after he rammed a Fortuner car into a railing and fell into a river in Bihar's Purnea last evening.

The white SUV was taken out of the river by a crane as people watched from the flyover.

The victim has been identified as Bablu Biswas, a resident of Kochaili. He was the owner of a Renault showroom.

In the videos that have emerged, the car can be seen being taken out from a crane and many bystanders helping in the process. People guided the person handling the crane and also tried to adjust the vehicle to have it out of the water faster. 

The car was severely damaged from the top and front, hinting at the kind of impact it had when it fell into the river.

Bablu's body was taken out after the crane recovered the four-wheeler from the river. The victim's body has now been sent to Purnea Medical College Hospital for a post-mortem examination.

As of now, the events leading up to the incident are not clear.

The Purnea accident comes against the backdrop of an ongoing probe into the Kerala Mercedes crash where a judge's 17-year-old son hit and killed a scooterist at Cheranalloor in Kochi. The case led to protests by the victim's family in the area. 

The teenager was detained and booked under Section 105 of the BNS (culpable homicide not amounting to murder). He was produced before the Juvenile Justice Board, which granted him bail.

His father, Additional District and Sessions Judge, who serves in a court in Irinjalakuda in Thrissur district of Kerala, was arraigned under Section 199A of the Motor Vehicles Act, which holds a juvenile's guardian or the registered owner of the vehicle liable for an offence committed by the minor under the Act, police said.

The car was registered in his name and the son was driving it. 

The judge later filed a bail plea in Kerala High Court claiming he was unaware that his minor son had taken out the car. The judge stated that he went to bed at 1:28 am on Sunday after preparing for a judicial academy, and his son took away the car and sneaked out through the rear staircase without his knowledge.

While granting bail to the judge, the Kerala High Court said: "What was the need to interrogate him for four hours and now for further interrogation?"

The court further questioned the cops on the need for further interrogation.  "Why is his arrest required? He is a judicial officer. He will co-operate with the investigation," the court observed.

(WIth inputs from Pankaj Bhartiya)