New Delhi: A drunk Audi driver ran over five people, including two couples and an eight-year-old girl, as they lay asleep on a footpath near Shiva Camp in southwest Delhi’s Vasant Vihar in the early hours of July 9.

The horrific incident occurred around 1:45 am, when the luxury vehicle, driven by 40-year-old Utsav Shekhar, ploughed through the sleeping victims, injuring them. Eyewitnesses described the scene as chaotic and terrifying, with screams piercing the night as the car crushed those lying defenceless on the roadside.

The injured include Ladhi (40), her daughter Bimla (8), husband Sabami alias Chirma (45), Ram Chander (45), and his wife Narayani (35), all hail from Rajasthan.

Shekhar, a resident of Dwarka, was immediately nabbed. Medical tests later confirmed that he was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the incident.

By the time police arrived, the injured had already been rushed to nearby hospitals by locals. Authorities have since launched legal proceedings against Shekhar, and a detailed investigation is underway to reconstruct the sequence of events and determine the full extent of negligence.

PTI inputs