A peaceful Friday evening turned into a scene of tragedy and carnage on the Neemuch-Jawad Road in Madhya Pradesh after an Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) allegedly drove drunk and rammed his vehicle into multiple motorcycles.
The incident, which occurred near Bharbhadia village in Neemuch, resulted in the immediate death of a teacher and left his wife and two young children critically injured.
According to eyewitnesses, the officer, Manoj Yadav, was so intoxicated he could barely stand. "He staggered out of the vehicle, smelling of alcohol, while people lay bleeding on the road," said one witness. Police later recovered a bottle of liquor and an empty glass from the ASI's vehicle.
The victim, Dashrath (42), a teacher at Gyanodya ITI College, was returning home with his family after buying vegetables when tragedy struck. His wife Lalita Bai (35), son Harshit (10), and daughter Jaya (6) sustained serious injuries. Another passerby, Bhopal (44), a resident of Athana, was also hurt.
Locals rushed the injured to the district hospital, where doctors declared Dashrath dead. His wife and children were later referred to a higher medical center in critical condition. Outraged residents gathered at the crash site, blocking the road and demanding the officer's arrest. Senior police officials arrived to pacify the protesters.
Following the public outcry, Neemuch SP suspended ASI Yadav and ordered a departmental inquiry. A named FIR has been registered against him for rash driving and causing death by negligence.
The Neemuch tragedy adds to a growing pattern of police and paramilitary personnel across Madhya Pradesh misusing their position with dangerous impunity.
Earlier this week, in Bhopal and Indore, two separate incidents exposed the same rot within the ranks.
On Monday evening, an Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) jawan, identified as Deepak alias Rajendra Singh, allegedly drunk, plowed his car into four pedestrians near Bhopal Railway Station, before being restrained by the public. Just hours later, in Indore's Raoji Bazaar, three policemen reportedly in uniform and under the influence hit two women outside a pharmacy and then sped off, injuring several bystanders in their escape attempt.
