Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (NM)
Mangalore, Apr 18: In an accident that took place on NH 66 at Baikampady here on Wednesday April 18, a middle aged couple was killed by a speeding Tata pick-up truck which rammed into their motorbike.
The deceased have been identified as Sirajuddin (47) of Jokatte and his wife Khateeja (37).
The accident took place at 6.15 am on Wednesday when they were on their way to Suratkal.
The accident claimed the life of Sirajudhin on the spot and his wife was immediately shifted to AJ Hospital for emergency treatment. She succumbed to her injuries at around 9.15 am.
The couple is survived by five children.
It is learnt that the couple was moving towards a hospital in the city, to meet Khateeja's niece who is recuperating after a surgery. The pick-up truck, it is gathered, was being driven negligently. The motor bike was badly mangled in the accident.
Sirajuddin, who worked as driver in Saudi Arabia for about 15 years, had settled down in his native village two years ago. He worked as an auto rickshaw driver there. The deceased couple has left behind five sons. The eldest son, Miman, works in a textiles show room in the city, while second son, Naufal (18) is pursuing studies in Kerala. Nayeem and Nabeel attend a local school, with the last child of the couple, eight-month-old Nahim, having been orphaned at a young age.
Driver of the killer vehicle, Jayaram, has been arrested. A case has been registered at Panambur police station. The Tata pick-up truck has been seized and taken into police custody.
The long-standing demand for the widening of the railway over bridge at Bykampady has been hanging in a limbo ostensibly because of the negligence of the railway authorities. It is said that the contractors executing national highway widening work had approached railway authorities several times for widening of the bridge, but the persistent pleas have fallen on deaf ears. As such, this spot has been claiming lives and witnessing grave injuries because of traffic snarls which occur here frequently every day.