Kannauj: Three men were killed and a fourth was seriously injured late on Monday night when a speeding Mahindra Thar SUV struck head-on the motorcycle they were riding near Kachatipur village, under the Indergarh police station area of Kannauj district in Uttar Pradesh. The crash took place between about 11.30 p.m. and 1 a.m. as the four friends were heading to Vishenpurva village in Indergarh, Dainik Jagran reported.

Source: Dainik Jagran

The men killed were identified as Vijay Kumar (35), Manish Kumar (28) and Vedram Pal (45). The injured man, Ashish Kumar Shukla (30), suffered severe injuries; he was admitted to the Government Medical College and, as his condition deteriorated, was referred to Kanpur for treatment, Jagran reported. All four were residents of Agous village and were riding together on a single motorcycle.

The Thar driver fled the scene with the vehicle immediately after the collision. Kannauj Police are scanning CCTV footage along the Tirwa–Indergarh route to identify the vehicle and trace the absconding driver, and an investigation is under way. The World Opinion, reporting the same crash, said three of the riders died at the scene, the fourth was rushed to hospital in a critical condition, and police had informed the families.

Source: The World Opinion

The Kannauj crash is the second fatal collision involving a Thar in the wider Kanpur region within days. In Kanpur's Kalyanpur area on Saturday evening, a Thar allegedly driven by a woman learner driver hit and dragged a scooter rider, 55-year-old LIC agent Santosh Singh Chauhan, to death; a court later released the arrested woman on a personal bond, finding her arrest lacked clear legal justification — a case Awaaz Punjab has reported separately.

Police have not yet announced any arrest in the Kannauj case. What happens next turns on the CCTV trail: identifying the Thar and its driver is the stated focus of the investigation, while the injured man remains under treatment after his referral to Kanpur.