He faces charges under sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 117(2) (voluntarily causing grievous hurt), and 324(4) (mischief causing property damage) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). A day after the road accident in Lehragaga, Sangrur, which claimed the lives of eight workers, the police have booked the car driver, identified as Pargat Singh of Raidharana village.
The complaint states that the accused stepped out of the car visibly under the influence of drugs. As the complainant rushed to aid the injured victims, the driver fled the scene. Sangrur senior superintendent of police Ravjot Grewal and deputy commissioner Punamdeep Kaur met the families of the deceased. Refusing to perform the last rites, the victims’ families demanded compensation and government jobs. Local villagers joined protesters in a sit-in at the accident site.
The incident took place near Alisher village, where a group of more than 20 workers enrolled under Viksit Bharat Guarantee Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission Gramin (earlier called MGNREGA) were engaged in work. The accident occurred around 3.40pm on Sunday when the driver lost control of the vehicle and plowed into a group of labourers on the roadside, according to the FIR.
Some of them were sitting along the road when a speeding car mowed them down, police said. Superintendent of police Palwinder Singh Cheema stated that all required tests would be conducted according to the SOP.
Family members stated that as many of the victims were the sole earners, their children are now left with no means of support. The families also turned down the ₹ 2 lakh compensation announced by chief minister Bhagwant Mann, calling the amount inadequate. The families and local union members demanded ₹ 50 lakh compensation and a government job for each deceased worker’s family, along with ₹ 20 lakh compensation for the injured.
