KOCHI: The third co-passenger in the car which met with an accident claiming the lives of two promising models -- Miss South India Ansi Kabeer and Miss Kerala first runner-up 2019 Anjana Shajan on November 1-- has succumbed to injuries. Mohammad Ashiq, 25, son of Ashraf, a native of Kattanbazar, Vemballoor in Thrissur district died at the Kochi hospital on Sunday night.
Ashiq was working with a Thrissur-based advertising firm and assisted several ad filmmakers. He befriended Ansi and Anjana while working in the advertising industry.
Police officials said that Ashiq has been on ventilator support for the last six days. "He suffered serious head injuries. Even though hospital authorities tried their best to save his life, they did not succeed. The body was handed over to relatives after postmortem procedure at Kalamassery Medical College," a police official said.
Meanwhile, Abdul Rahman, a native of Mala who drove the car, has been shifted out from the ICU. His life could be saved due to the car's frontal airbag, which acted as the first line of defense after the speeding vehicle crashed into a tree at the roadside in the wee hours of November 1.
A public relations officer of the private hospital where Abdul Rahman is undergoing treatment said that his condition is stable. "He is out from the ICU and shifted to a room here. He is recovering from the injury and will be discharged once there is further improvement in his health condition," he said.
On November 1, between 1 am and 1.30 am, the car driven by Rahman with three co-passengers hit a bike, lost control, and crashed into a tree at the roadside near Chakaramparambu, Vytilla in Kochi. They were returning after a late evening event at a hotel in Fort Kochi and were travelling to Thrissur. As per the preliminary assessment of the police and Motor Vehicle Department, the car was overspeeding resulting in the accident. The police are waiting for the postmortem report and other medical reports to draw a proper conclusion into the reasons behind the accident. The case was registered at Palarivattom Police Station.