Shimla, January 13: Seven young men, all residents of Brahmpuri area in East Delhi, died after the vehicle they were travelling in skidded off the road and rolled down a gorge in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh in the early hours of Tuesday.
The victims — all in the age group of 21 to 25 years — were on way Vaishno Devi shrine in Jammu from Shimla, the police said.
According to an officer from Bhrarighat police station, six persons died on the spot; the seventh victim succumbed to injuries on way to hospital. Two others, critically injured, have been referred to PGI Chandigarh, the officer said.
Bilaspur Superintendent of Police Kuldeep Sharma said the accident occurred around 12.30 am near Dadhol, around 115 kilometres from Shimla.
“Prima facie, it appears the driver of the Mahindra Scorpio, who also died in the accident, failed to negotiate a sharp turn close to a narrow bridge on the road,” the officer said. It could have been a case of accident due to speeding, according to the officer.
Five of the seven victims have been identified as Deepak Garg, Nitin Sharma, Sonu Kumar, Yakshit Kumar (driver) and Sailesh. The two injured were identified as Ganesh and Parvez.
Bilaspur Deputy Commissioner Nandita Gupta said relatives of the deceased reached the district on Tuesday.
—Agencies