CHENNAI: Actor and former Bigg Boss (Tamil) contestant
Yashika Aannand suffered severe injuries and her friend died when the SUV they were travelling in smashed into a railing and fell into a roadside pit near Soolerikadu on East Coast Road (ECR) on Saturday night.
Police identified the deceased as
Vallichatti Bhavani
, 28, of Hyderabad, a software engineer working in the UK.
The SUV (TN01 BK 8632), with Yashika Aannand at the wheel, was coming to Chennai from Mamallapuram. Bhavani was in the front passenger seat and two men, their friends, were in the rear.
Around 11.50pm, as they were nearing Soolerikadu on the East Coast Road, Yashika allegedly lost control of the vehicle which broke through an iron railing on the side of the road and plunged into a pit.
A few passersby including motorists rushed to the spot and sent the four to the nearest hospital. Bhavani had died on the spot and was declared brought dead at the hospital, police said.
After being provided initial treatment, the others were shifted to a private hospital on Greams Road where they are undergoing treatment. While Yashika suffered injuries to the neck and a fracture to the hip, the two men escaped with minor injuries.
The body of
Bhavani, who had suffered severe head injuries, was sent for a postmortem to the
Chengalpet
government hospital. The Mamallapuram police registered a case and are investigating.
After initial inquiries, police said that Bhavani had come to the city from the UK four days ago.
She visited her friends on Saturday and the four including Yashika Aannand decided to visit Mamallapuram to look at the sculptures and the monuments and also played on the beach. They had come to the shore town around 6am.
Since Bhavani had to take a flight back to the UK on Sunday, they decided to return in the night itself to Chennai, when the accident took place. The rear part of the vehicle was completely damaged.
The Mamallapuram police registered a case of rash driving and causing death due to negligence.
Police said an examination had confirmed that that the actor was not drunk at the time but could have lost control while speeding. A further probe is on in the case.