Girl, 10, dies, her neighbour injured in Hailey Mandi crash

A 10-year-old girl was killed, and a 34-year-old man was critically injured after being struck by a speeding truck while crossing a road in Hailey Mandi, Pataudi, police reported on Tuesday. The deceased, identified as Mehak, was crossing the road with her neighbour, Kapil Singh, a resident of Kakrola in Sector 87, when the accident occurred. 

According to investigators, 30-year-old Poonam Devi had taken her children, Deepanshu and Mehak, to visit her parents in Naya Gaon, Sohna, over the weekend. On Monday, Devi’s brother, Manesh Kumar, was riding them back home on his motorcycle when Devi noticed her neighbour, Kapil Singh, in Pataudi. She decided to join him in his car with her children for the remainder of the journey. 

The accident happened when Singh stopped his car near a tailor’s shop in Hailey Mandi around 1.30pm to collect some garments. While crossing the road with Mehak, the two were hit by a speeding truck. Mehak was caught under the truck’s wheels and died on the spot, while Singh sustained serious injuries. 

Sandeep Kumar, public relations officer of Gurugram police, said that the truck driver and co-driver fled immediately, abandoning the vehicle. “Locals quickly informed the police control room and arranged an ambulance to transport both victims to the community health centre in Pataudi, where doctors declared the girl dead. Singh was later moved to a private hospital for further treatment,” Kumar added. Police said that the girl received severe head trauma, while Singh sustained injuries in multiple parts of his body.

Police said they are working with the transport department to trace the truck’s ownership to locate and arrest the driver. An FIR has been lodged at Pataudi police station under Sections 106 (causing death by negligence) and 281 (rash driving or riding on a public way) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita on the complaint of Satbir Singh, Devi’s brother-in-law.