In yet another case of reckless driving, a youth and his five-year-old cousin were killed when a group of girls in a car, allegedly racing with another vehicle, hit their two-wheeler in the high-security area of Chandigarh.
The incident took place at Sector-3, at a spot close to the residences of the chief ministers of both Punjab and Haryana late on Tuesday night.
The police said the accident was the result of a "race" between two cars -- a Maruti Swift driven by some people and a Honda Accord driven by the group of girls.
The girls, who were suspected to be in an inebriated condition, lost control over the vehicle while driving at high speed from Sukhna Lake towards Sector-3, the police said. They then hit a motorbike which was passing by, killing 21-year-old Sukhwinder, an engineering student, and his five-year-old cousin Harpreet.
The impact of the collision was such that the child was thrown several metres into the air, they said, citing eyewitnesses. While the child died on the spot, the youth succumbed to injuries at a hospital.
The victims belonged to Kansal village near Chandigarh. The girls fled the spot in the Swift car after the incident, leaving their vehicle behind, they said, adding that the car, which has been badly damaged, was bearing a VIP registration number belonging to a retired lieutenant colonel in the Army.
A case has been registered and the police are questioning the ex-serviceman at his residence. No arrests have been made so far.
