‘Thar menace’ continues in Bhubaneswar: SUV runs over parked scooter, driver detained

Months after a speeding Thar SUV made headlines for running over a mother-daughter duo in Bhubaneswar, the state capital witnessed yet another disturbance involving the SUV on Wednesday evening when the vehicle climbed over a parked scooter along the Canal Road stretch under Laxmisagar Police Station limits.

Sources said that a speeding black Thar SUV rammed into a two-wheeler parked along the road. The scooter rider, who had stepped away moments before to enter an adjacent shop, narrowly escaped injury. 

According to sources, the two-wheeler had been parked along the roadside when the Thar mounted the pavement and ran over it, damaging the vehicle. No casualty was reported as the rider was not present at the time of impact.

However, the incident triggered tension among bystanders, leading to immediate intervention by the local police. Authorities then seized the Thar and detained its driver for questioning.

Police Begin Inquiry Into Driver

Laxmisagar Police stated that an investigation has been initiated to determine whether the driver was speeding, distracted or in violation of traffic safety norms.

Officials said that the accused has been held at the police station while vehicle inspection, documentation verification and assessment of driving conditions at the time of the incident are being carried out. Authorities have not yet issued details regarding possible charges.

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Public Concern Over High-Speed SUVs in Bhubaneswar

The latest incident has revived concerns over reckless driving in the capital, particularly involving powerful SUVs.

Residents at the site complained that poorly monitored driving behaviour, combined with increasing traffic density, has made several city corridors vulnerable to such incidents.

The Laxmisagar case comes months after the widely condemned accident involving a Thar in Bhubaneswar’s Patrapada locality on August 9. In that incident, an eight-year-old girl and her mother were killed during an alleged high-speed chase between a Scorpio and a Thar on Rakhi Purnima day.

The case led to large-scale public outrage, suspension of driving licences of the accused, and the arrest of the Thar owner, Somnath Behera, after a 45-day search that ended in Puri.