Renault Kwid on wrong side collides with a speeding Toyota Fortuner on expressway; 3 dead

A Renault Kwid driven on the wrong side of the road rammed into a speeding Toyota Fortuner coming from the opposite direction, leading to three deaths and five injured people. The massive crash left the Kwid completely smashed, with the hatchback nearly shrinking to half its size due to the impact. The Fortuner also toppled indicating how brutal the impact was.

The accident happened 3 weeks back, on the Agra-Lucknow expressway, at about 11 AM in the morning. The Toyota Fortuner was heading towards Lucknow, to a wedding in Faizabad district. It’s unclear as to where the Kwid, which was coming from the wrong side, was headed.

All three occupants of the Kwid succumbed to their injuries. While the driver and co-passenger died on the spot, a woman traveling on the back seat died while being taken to a hospital. Vineet Agrawal (58), his wife Sushma Agrawal (56) and friend Ragunath Prasad Gupta (66), of Pili Kothi and Ajeet Nagar, respectively, in UP’s Etawah district, were the people traveling in the Renault Kwid.

The people in the Toyota Fortuner were Lal Mani Pandey (42), president of Noida Bar Association (district court), his wife Asha Pandey (40), his son Anoop Pandey (12) and relatives Vishal Tiwari (23) and Nidhi Tiwari (13). All five occupants of the Toyota Fortuner were injured in the crash.

Superintendent of police, (city) Firozabad, Rajesh Kumar Singh, said,

The three persons killed in the accident were going Agra to attend a condolence ceremony. The victims were on the wrong side. After the accident, the injured were taken to a hospital, while the deceased were sent to post-mortem house for autopsy. We also recovered an ID card of UP roadways from the victim. It seems that he was using fake ID cards and passes to void toll tax and police checking. Our team is investigating the matter.

Perils of wrong side driving/riding

Riding/driving on the wrong side is common in India, despite the sheer dangers involved. While on the highway, always keep an eye out on vehicles coming from the wrong side of the road. From tractors to two wheelers to even trucks, vehicles coming from the wrong side of the road can assume many forms.

When faced with a vehicle coming from the wrong side, it’s best to slow down and come to a halt. Often, trying to pass or evade a vehicle coming from the wrong side results in a collision due to the sheer confusion wrong side driving/riding causes.

Via TOI