KATHMANDU: Police have initiated action against the driver responsible for killing a woman who was walking on the footpath near the gates of Budhanilkantha School on Saturday morning.

Prithvi Malla (21) was driving under influence as the car he was driving (Ba 14 Cha 6123) hit the pedestrian at 8:00 am. The car then crashed into a nearby electricity pylon.

Malla has been charged with Sawari Jyaan Mudda (Vehicular Homicide) under the Motor Vehicles and Transport Management Act, 2049 BS (1993 AD), according to Maharajgunj Police Circle.

The victim, Leela Devkota (38), was pronounced dead after preliminary examinations at the Upendra Devkota Memorial National Institute of Neurological and Allied Sciences, which is around four kilometres away from the site of the incident.

Chief of the Circle, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Umesh Lamsal told THT Online that one of Malla's friends present in the car at the time of the accident was rounded up for investigation but has now been released. The friend has been identified as Karish Maskey.

It has also been learnt that there were two women in the car with Malla and Maskey, who fled the scene following the incident.

According to Krishna Deuja, an eyewitness, the two women were seated on the back of the car. As soon as the accident happened, the they were rushed out of the car by Malla and Maskey and the unidentified passengers fled the site.

Another eyewitness, a local, however, stated the two were seated in the car for a while, got out after a few minutes and were moving around for a few minutes before leaving the scene.

Police arrived at the scene within a few couple of minutes. "The women had already moved by then. The police then held the two men," Deuja added.

Ganga Gurung, another witness who works in the area, added that a bike parked in a servicing garage nearby had also been hit by the car. We later contacted the garage owner who verified that the bike had indeed been hit.

All the eyewitnesses were on the same page regarding the severely inebriated state of all four people in the vehicle.

"All of them appeared disoriented. One of them even hailed a taxi, can't say for sure why. The women crossed the road and lurked around for a while before finally leaving," said the local.

We probed the DSP regarding the two women passengers, to which he first responded that they have been contacted, but later refused to divulge any details. "We cannot reveal any further information regarding this case."

The details of the incident were first reported by Thaha Khabar Online.

(Edited by: Richa Thapa)

READ ALSO:

Budhanilkantha accident: Victim’s family says state must ensure guilty is brought to book