Tanker driver: I sped away in fear after seeing girl in flames

BENGALURU: Sunil Kumar, 22, driver of the water tanker which was involved in Tuesday's accident that left a 20-year-old student with 35% burns on Suddaguntepalya Main Road, told police that he sped away in fear after seeing the girl on fire.
Priya Garg, 20, is undergoing treatment at a hospital after sustaining 35% burns. A 11kV live wire fell on the II BA psychology student of Christ deemed-to-be university after the pole supporting it came crashing down.
The optical fibre cables tied to the pole got stuck to a water tanker and were dragged as it passed by.
A resident of Suddaguntepalya, Sunil said he noticed smaller vehicles such as cars and SUVs moving under the dangling cables and thought he could also pass without touching them. But they got stuck to his vehicle and pulled down the electric pole.
Sunil said a few people were shouting at him when the pole was falling, but he was helpless. After the pole collapsed on the road, some suggested that he park the vehicle without disrupting vehicular movement. "So, I drove the truck for around 20 metres and turned towards the pole and found the girl on fire. I was scared of a mob attack, so drove away and parked the vehicle at the owner's place in Suddaguntepalya, off Hosur Road," he told police.
Police contacted the vehicle owner and asked him to bring Sunil to the station. He was produced before the court. As the sections invoked against him were bailable, the court asked police to complete the procedures at the station itself. "He was taken back to the police station and released on station bail. Sunil was returning to his employer after unloading drinking water for a customer when the accident happened," an officer said.
The driver of the cement- mixer truck, which had dragged the cables down, is yet to be caught. The mixer truck passed 45 minutes before the incident but left the cables sagging. Efforts are to trace the vehicle and its driver, an officer said. "During investigation, we will serve a notice on Bescom and the private firm that had installed the OFC wires. We will take their statement and initiate action," said Mico Layout traffic police.