SUV moving on wrong side claims biker’s life in DLF 2

Gurgaon: A 23-year-old man died after his bike had a head-on collision with an SUV being driven on the wrong side on Golf Course Road in DLF 2 early on Sunday morning. The SUV driver was detained and later released on bail. Police said biker Akshat Garg was from Pochanpur in Dwarka. The SUV driver, Kuldeep Kumar Thakur (25), is a resident of Ghitorni and the co-founder of a PR company. According to police, Garg and his friend Pradyuman Kumar (22) left Dwarka early on Sunday morning for a ride on separate bikes. The duo first went to DLF Downtown, following which they planned to meet a group of riders at Ambience Mall. Kumar said Garg had taken all precautions and was wearing a helmet and other safety gear. Kumar was following him on another motorcycle on Golf Course Road when the accident happened near Belvedere Towers around 5.25am. A Mahindra XUV 300 car, driven by Thakur, suddenly appeared and Garg's bike collided head-on with it, Kumar said. Thakur was driving the car in the wrong direction on the one-way lane, he added. "I was around 100ft behind Garg and witnessed the accident. I rushed to him. While some passersby caught hold of the SUV driver, others called up the police and an ambulance. I was with Akshat trying to remove his helmet and waiting for the ambulance. But by the time it arrived, he had stopped breathing," Kumar said. Kumar alleged that Thakur was driving on the wrong side of the road at a high speed, leading to the death of his friend. "The SUV also had a sticker of a BJP candidate. Police didn't accept footage of the accident recorded by my GoPro camera, which I had installed on my helmet as evidence. They soon released Thakur on bail, probably due to his political connections," he alleged. The footage, which was also circulated widely on social media, shows Garg riding his bike at a high speed and crashing into the SUV. Police have denied Kumar's claims, stating that the video footage was accepted as evidence and the driver was booked and granted bail in accordance with the law. Based on Kumar's complaint, an FIR was lodged at DLF 2 police station against Thakur under BNS sections 106 (causing death by negligence), 281 (rash driving) and 324(4) (causing damage exceeding Rs 20,000), as well as relevant sections of the MV Act. Thakur told the police that he was following Google Maps while returning from Palwal along with another person when the accident happened. "Thakur's medical examination was conducted. We collected his blood samples as well. He joined the investigation and was granted bail. We take wrong-side driving seriously and have issued challans to 16,300 people for the offence in Aug alone. We will continue to take action against violators," a senior police officer told TOI.