Two held after car rams police barricade at Kapashera border, personnel escape unhurt

Police said the driver and the front-seat passenger were found inebriated and tested positive through a breath analyser.

A Delhi Police head constable and two homeguard constables narrowly escaped being hit after a car allegedly driven by an inebriated man rammed into an iron barricade at a police picket on Kapashera border in southwest Delhi in the early hours of Friday, police said on Sunday. The damaged barricade got stuck under the car and was dragged for some distance before the vehicle came to a halt.

Two held after car rams police barricade at Kapashera border, personnel escape unhurt

Two men, including the driver, were apprehended and booked for multiple offences, including obstructing and assaulting public servants, rash driving, committing mischief with intent to cause fear of death or injury, and drunk driving. An FIR under sections 221 (obstructing public servant), 132 (assaulting a public servant), 281 (rash driving) and 324(6) (mischief) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and section 185 of the Motor Vehicle Act was registered at Kapashera police station.

Deputy commissioner of police (southwest) Amit Goel said head constable Amit Kumar of Kapashera police station and constables Mohan and Harish from the Delhi home guards were on night picket duty when the incident occurred. Around 12.30am, they signalled a speeding white Maruti Suzuki Swift coming from Gurugram to stop. The driver turned into Surya Vihar lane but re-emerged 20 minutes later and approached the checkpoint.

According to the FIR, the car slowed when signalled to stop again, but the front passenger allegedly shouted at the driver “not to stop the car and hit anyone coming in its line.” A police officer said, “The driver accelerated the car and rammed an iron barricade. The police personnel standing near it jumped aside to save themselves. They escaped unhurt. A few public persons passing by also had a narrow escape.”

The officer added, “The impact of the hit was such that the barricade was badly damaged and got stuck in the front wheel of the car. The car dragged it to some distance. During the incident, a blast-like sound occurred due to bursting of the car’s tyre. After the car stopped, some public persons pulled three occupants out of the vehicle and assaulted them before the police personnel arrived and rescued them.”

Police said the driver and the front-seat passenger were found inebriated and tested positive through a breath analyser. They were identified as Deepak Lamba, 24, and Rahul Hooda, 25, who run a business providing electric scooties on rent.

In a separate incident, a 51-year-old assistant sub-inspector of Delhi Traffic Police was assaulted on Thursday in Najafgarh when the driver of a Toyota Fortuner SUV allegedly tore his uniform after being asked to follow a diversion rule under the Urban Extension Road flyover. “He hurled abuses at the policeman on duty, assaulted him and tore his uniform before fleeing in his SUV. A case has been registered and efforts are being made to identify and nab him,” said a senior police officer.