BENGALURU: A 48-year-old woman was killed and her husband sustained severe injuries after a car driven by Kannada film actor Nagabhushana NS allegedly hit them on Vasanthapura main road in south Bengaluru on Saturday night.
Police identified the deceased as Prema S and her injured husband as Krishna B, 58, an autorickhaw driver, and a resident of Vasanthapura.
According to police, the accident occurred around 9.45pm near the couple's house in Vasanthapura. Nagabhushana claimed he rushed the injured persons to the hospital, but Prema could not be saved.
Police have registered a case against Nagabhushana based on a complaint filed by Prema's son Partha K, a software engineer. KS Layout traffic police arrested and released the actor on station bail. Police may summon him for further probe.
DCP (traffic south) Shiva Prakash Devaraj told reporters that the accident occurred due to rash and negligent driving by the suspect.
Police said preliminary investigation revealed that there were road humps near the accident spot and suspect rash and negligent driving might have been the main reason behind the accident. Police said the driver was not found drunk at the time of the accident.
Nagabhushana told police he was returning to his JP Nagar residence from RR Nagar when the accident occurred. "A woman and a man suddenly entered the road from a footpath. I was taken aback and hit them. The vehicle stopped after hitting a roadside electric pole. I noticed the injured woman was not in the condition of speaking and the man was conscious. Passers-by and I rushed them to a hospital, where doctors declared her brought dead. The injured man was shifted to another hospital for treatment. Later, I came to know that the deceased was Prema and the injured was her husband Krishna. I was driving my car when the accident occurred," Nagabhushana said in his statement to police later in the night.
Nagabhushana has played supporting roles in recent films like Kousalya Supraja Rama, Nodi Swami Ivanu Irode Heege and Daredevil Musthafa. He had played the lead role in Ikkat, drawing acclaim.