Front tyre burst on impact: Experts

KOLKATA: Three teenagers out on a pre-daybreak joyride died in a high-speed car crash in New Town on Tuesday after their friend, who was at the wheel, lost control while taking a U-turn and rammed into a road divider and a Metro pillar.The impact threw the sedan 12 feet away against the kerb on the service road and all three on the back seat — cousins Mayank (18) and Kaushal (17) Jhawar and class-XI student Nishidh Jaiswal — died on the spot. Mohit Jain (21), who was driving his dad’s black Honda City, was critically injured. The only occupant of the car who escaped with minimum injuries was Sarbjyot Singh; seated next to the driver, he was the sole occupant who had buckled the seat belt.Mayank was a first-year commerce student of St Xavier’s College and Kaushal studied in class XI at Burrabazar’s Shree Jain Vidyalay. At least two of the occupants appeared to be under the influence of alcohol, police officials said.The incident took place shortly after 5 am when the stretch had very few cars. The car’s horn — set off by the crash — drew the attention of other motorists, who saw two bloodsplattered bodies hanging out of the windows of the mangled car; the third back-seat occupant seemed lifeless and the driver was trapped between the seat and the steering wheel. Only one occupant, Sarbjyot, had managed to step out of the car.“We got the first call around 5.15 am and sent our teams to the spot immediately. The car’s right side was completely smashed and there was blood all over the place. The three rear-seat occupants had no pulse on them and we transferred them to Bidhannagar Sub-Divisional Hospital. We had to bring a gas cutter to extricate the driver. He was then transferred to a private hospital on VIP Road,” a senior Bidhannagar Commissionerate official said.“We questioned Sarbjyot and he said they had a party at Mohit’s house in Salt Lake, after which they went for a spin. It’s unclear who all were there at the party. We have sent blood samples to find out whether they contained alcohol,” the officer added.Forensic experts probing the case said the car was being driven at 80-100 kmph, well above the 50-kmph speed limit on New Town’s main arterial road.Senior forensic official Wasim Raza said, “It seems the driver took a sharp U-turn at high speed and then lost control. There are sharp S-shaped skid marks on the road, which suggest the driver tried to brake before hitting the kerb. The car then went on to hit the Metro pillar and then landed on the service road. We are trying to ascertain the exact speed of the vehicle at the time of the accident .” He added that the front left tyre had burst because of the impact.A member of the Jain family said that Mohit was fond of driving, but they were extremely cautious in letting him drive.“His dad was not aware that Mohit had taken the car out for a ride on Tuesday. The car was parked on the road outside their house in AH Block. The family came to know about the accident only when cops called,” the relative said.Mohit’s father Binod said his son had a driving licence but added he was not in a condition to share more details.“He is undergoing surgery and battling for life. I cannot say anything more now,” Binod said.Mohit underwent a cervical spine surgery at a private hospital on EM Bypass and his situation was stated to be critical till late on Tuesday.