Four killed, seven injured as car rams stationary truck near Tumakuru

Four persons, including a seven-year-old girl, were killed and seven others were injured in an early morning crash near Bellavi Cross in Tumakuru on Friday, police said.

According to the police, the deceased and the injured were returning from the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple to Koppal.

The deceased have been identified as Sakshi, 7, Maruthi, 45, Venkatesh, and Gavisidappa, both aged around 30. They were residents of Kuknur and Gaddikeri in Koppal. The vehicle in which the victims were travelling rammed a stationary truck near Bellavi Cross, in the Kora police station limits, the police said.

A police official told The Hindu that the deceased were Ayyappa devotees who had visited the Sabarimala temple on January 5 along with the injured. They left Sabarimala on Thursday evening, and the incident occurred around 5.30 a.m.

“The driver, identified as Praveen Kumar, is believed to have felt drowsy, which led to the incident. We are yet to record his statement,” the officer said, adding that the injured are receiving treatment at a government hospital.

The police have registered an FIR.