Bachupalli accident: Book case against GHMC, BRS for causing girl’s death, says Congress

Hyderabad: The Congress has blamed the negligence of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government for the tragic road accident involving an 8-year-old girl in the Bachupalli area.

Many Congress leaders alleged that the roads in Hyderabad have turned into a death trap for many users as the BRS government is not taking any measures to improve their condition after recent rains.

The accident occurred on Wednesday when a father was taking his daughter, Deekshita, to school on a two-wheeler. They hit a pothole, fell off the bike, and the girl was run over by a bus coming from behind.

TPCC spokesperson Syed Nizamuddin alleged that this was not an isolated incident as many accidents have taken place due to the poor condition of roads within GHMC limits. He stressed that the death could have been prevented if the authorities had addressed the issue of over 3,500 reported potholes in Hyderabad roads. “Despite claims of conducting patchwork, the GHMC’s inaction has put all road users at risk,” he said.

“The roads under BRS rule have become death traps, causing 300 deaths and injuring more than 2,000 in about 2,500 road accidents that occur every year in Hyderabad alone. This places Hyderabad in the alarming eighth position among the top 10 million-plus cities ranked as per the number of accidents,” he said.

The Congress leader demanded that the bus driver, the GHMC, and the BRS government be booked for Deekshita’s death under Section 304A for causing death due to negligence. He argued that those responsible for not repairing potholes and roads should be held accountable.

“The common people are not interested in fancy terms like the Road Accident Analysis Group or Accident Data Management System,” said Nizamuddin. “They simply want safe roads where they can drive comfortably. There should be accountability, and any official directly or indirectly responsible for the accident should face punishment.”

Survey of bad roads and warning signboards

He said an immediate survey should be conducted on the condition of all roads in Greater Hyderabad, especially in light of recent rains. He asked for a comprehensive list of unsafe roads and potholes to be placed in the public domain and installation of signboards saying ‘Drive Carefully, This Road is Unsafe’ on said roads if immediate repairs are not feasible. “All bad roads must be repaired on a war footing basis,” Syed said.

He said that the state government must establish and enforce strict accountability measures, including punishment for officials responsible for deaths caused by poor road conditions.

“We deeply mourn the death of Deekshita. We feel sorry for not being able to save her life. But we should all try our level best to save our future Deekshitas by ensuring road safety,” he said in a heartfelt note.

Those present at the meeting also include Hyderabad district committee president Sameer Waliullah, Lingojiguda division corporator Darpally Rajasekhar Reddy, former GHMC floor leader Wajid Hussain, TPCC spokespersons Medipally Ravi Chandra and Dr Lingam Yadav who spoke about the accident.