7 killed in car, bike, canter crash on Bengaluru highway

Seven people were killed in a devastating road accident early on Friday near M. Sathyavara village in Hoskote taluk of Karnataka’s Bengaluru Rural district.

The crash occurred on the Hoskote–Dabaspete National Highway and involved a canter truck, a motorcycle and an XUV car, triggering a fatal chain collision.

According to preliminary police findings, the XUV, travelling from Kolar towards Devanahalli, first rammed into a motorcycle moving ahead of it. The driver allegedly lost control soon after, and the vehicle then crashed into a canter truck. The impact was so severe that six occupants of the car and the bike rider died on the spot.

Police said the force of the collision left the XUV completely mangled. All six deceased in the car are believed to be residents of Kothanur in Bengaluru.

Inspector general of police (central) Labhu Ram, who visited the scene, confirmed the deaths and said the vehicles had been cleared and the bodies shifted to hospital. “Seven persons were killed in a series of road accidents. The bodies of six persons — travelling on a bike and an XUV — have been identified. We will contact their families and complete further procedures. Efforts are on to identify another deceased person,” he said.

He added that investigators are probing whether the car driver was under the influence of alcohol. “The investigation is on to ascertain if the driver was in an inebriated state. We cannot confirm that at this stage,” he said.

Following the collision, the truck and the motorcycle reportedly crossed the median and fell onto the opposite carriageway, while the damaged XUV came to a halt nearly 500 metres from the point of impact.

Personnel from the Sulibele police station rushed to the spot and launched an investigation. Bengaluru rural superintendent of police Chandrakant also inspected the site. Initial findings suggest overspeeding may have been a primary cause of the accident.

The bodies have been shifted to the government hospital in Hoskote for post-mortem examination.

Meanwhile, local residents raised concerns about the design and construction quality of the highway stretch between Sadappanahalli and Kamalipura Bridge. They alleged that the road lacks proper scientific planning and claimed that design flaws had been flagged during construction.

Police said further investigation is underway, and more details are awaited.

With IANS inputs