BENGALURU: Bala’s uncle Deelip Rajaput who is an eyewitness to the horrific accident narrated how it took place. “I was talking with my relatives as we had a plan to leave for Dharwad around 5.30 am. Bala and his mother Malabai were asleep and they had stretched their legs towards the fuel station while others were lying with their legs outstretched towards the highway.
The container truck was pulling up at the footpath adjacent to the fuel station. As the front wheel of the truck ran over Bala, I started shouting. Others who were sleeping woke up and ran away into the fuel station. The truck cleaner who noticed our screams alerted the driver who sped the vehicle away. However, I chased it for while to catch him, but I could not. Drivers of other vehicles who noticed me did not come to my help me or try to stop the container truck”, Rajaput said.
Yeshavanth, a staffer at the fuel station said, “I came for first shift when the police were inspecting the accident spot. These people would sleep at the nearby bus stop or at the rear side of the fuel station. But on Sunday night, they slept near the highway and the driver did not notice them as they were covered with bed sheets. The police took CCTV footage of the vehicle at the toll booth and my subordinates who were on night shift also give them information”.
It is said as the family was speaking Hindi, the locals did not understand at first what they were shouting about. But soon the staff of the fuel station rushed out and found the body of Bala lying in a pool of blood and alerted Nelamangala Traffic police.