Bhubaneswar: A law student was arrested on Tuesday after the SUV he was allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol collided head-on with a motorcycle near Shastri Nagar Square in Bhubaneswar late on Monday night, killing a 34-year-old man.
The accused, identified as Soumya Ranjan Rath, was booked on charges of rash and negligent driving and drunken driving, police said. The deceased was identified as Debi Prasad Routray.
Zone-I ACP Ramesh Chandra Bisoi said Rath was driving the luxury SUV in an inebriated condition when the accident occurred.
The accident took place around 10.30 pm on Monday when the speeding SUV rammed into Routray’s motorcycle near Shastri Nagar Square. The impact of the collision was so severe that the two-wheeler was completely damaged.
Hearing the loud crash, locals rushed to the spot and found Routray critically injured. He was immediately shifted to Capital Hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival.
Police said the SUV driver allegedly tried to flee after the accident. However, locals intercepted the vehicle and detained Rath along with a woman passenger who was travelling with him.
A team from Kharavel Nagar Police Station reached the spot and rescued the duo from an angry crowd before taking them into custody.
Senior police officers later visited the accident site, pacified the protesters and assured them of strict action against the accused.
Police have seized both the SUV and the motorcycle involved in the crash.
Further investigation is underway to ascertain the exact circumstances leading to the accident.
