Surat: Even as the death of MICA student Priyanshu Jain in a road accident in Ahmedabad has not yet faded from the collective memory, a similar horrific incident has shocked the Diamond City. A 56-year-old man was deliberately run over after an argument about rash driving on Saturday.
The victim has been identified Jitendra Katargam working in a PSU bank. The incident took place in Surat’s Katargam area in the presence of the victim’s son.
On the night of November 10, Jain was stabbed to death by constable Virendrasinh Padheriya after the MICA student shouted at the police for his rash driving in Ahmedabad’s Bopal area.
In the Surat incident, Kanthariya went to the FSL office in Surat on Saturday to receive his son Bhavik. While returning home to Amroli around 3.15 pm, they stopped at Ratnamala Junction due to traffic. Meanwhile, a white pickup truck (Bolero) hit their motorcycle from behind.
Both Kanthariya and Bhavik confronted the pacer regarding his rash driving, which led to a heated argument between them. Allegedly, the driver verbally abused him before speeding up. The temporary officer hit Kanthariya and dragged him for some time.
The pace stopped only after Bhavik and passersby tried to stop it. But by then Kanthariya was seriously injured. The pace rider sped away. Kanthariya was taken to Prananath Hospital where he was declared dead by doctors.
The entire incident was captured on CCTV. Surat crime branch and Katargam police station teams swung into action and nabbed tempo driver Mayur Mer (39) near Khodiyar Temple in Mahidharpura. The tempo has caught up.
Mer was arrested for murder and criminal intimidation under the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Since Kanthariya belongs to the SC community, relevant sections of the Prevention of Atrocities Act were also invoked.
Kanthariya was working as a servant in the Bank of Baroda. His son works in Surat’s FSL office.