Delhi: Police vehicle rams into tea stall, physically challenged owner killed

New Delhi, Sep 18 (PTI) A 55-year-old physically challenged tea seller was killed after a police patrolling van rammed into his roadside stall in central Delhi's Mandir Marg area on Thursday morning, police said.

Locals claimed that the police personnel appeared to be intoxicated, and there were alcohol bottles in their car. However, police said the medical reports confirmed no traces of alcohol.

The victim, identified as Gangaram Tiwari, was sleeping at his tea shop when the incident took place around 5 am, a senior police officer said. Sharing details of the incident, Vinod Yadav, a local, told PTI, "We have been living here for a decade and are from Gonda. When the accident occurred, we rushed out of our makeshift houses. We saw a PCR van that had crushed Gangaram's head. We tried to stop them from fleeing and noticed alcohol bottles in their van." Yadav further alleged that when the locals attempted to intervene, the police personnel pulled out their pistols and pointed them at one person’s head. "They also threw away the mobile phone of a man who was recording the video," he alleged. Pawan Kumar, a driver and a frequent visitor at the tea shop, said, "The van came at a high speed around 5 am and drove over the tea seller. He is usually awake by 4.30 am. However, today he was asleep." Geeta, who considered Gangaram a family member, stated, "The police used to visit here frequently early in the morning. In fact, it was Gangaram who would prepare and serve them tea during their visits." "We don’t know what happened in the morning. We were also asleep. When we heard a loud crashing noise, we immediately rushed out to see that Gangaram had been killed mercilessly. He has children and a wife to look after. We demand that the family be fairly compensated," Geeta said. Raju, a rickshaw puller, told PTI that he and his friends used to come early in the morning to drink tea from his stall. "Usually, he woke up by 4.30 am. I, along with some cab drivers who work in the area, would gather at his tea stall to have our morning tea. Today, when I came here to drink tea, he was asleep. My friend and I decided to wait a little and call others in the meantime," he stated. "Around 5 am, we were standing nearby when we saw a speeding PCR van ramming into his tea stall. The impact of the accident was such that his head was separated from his body, and blood was splashed all over the place," he claimed.

Pawan stated that they rushed to save Gangaram, but by the time they arrived at the scene, he had already passed away. "People began to gather due to the noise and also because Gangaram was always kind to everyone. He was physically challenged, yet he worked very hard," Kumar said.

The driver of the Police Control Room (PCR) van, Constable Khimlesh, has been arrested, while the Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police has been suspended.

The PCR van driver informed the police that he accidentally pressed the accelerator instead of the brake, which led to the incident, officials said. A case under Section 106 (Causing death by negligence) of the BNS has been registered at the Mandir Marg Police Station. Tiwari is survived by his wife and six children, including a son in his early 20s, who lives in Delhi. His wife and his other children, including a 20-year-old son, reside in Gonda, the officer added.

The body has been sent for postmortem, and further investigation is underway, police said. PTI SSJ SSJ MPL MPL