Kalaburagi, 23 May

Five people -- all related to each other -- have been killed after a cruiser vehicle they were travelling in collided head-on with a lorry in this district, police said on Saturday.

The accident occurred on National Highway 150 near Ladlapur village in Chittapur taluk of Kalaburagi district late Friday night, they said.

The deceased were identified as Tolusab Kashwar (27), Hussain Shah (48), Maibub Ali (45), Rasul Bee (42), and Fatima Ali (38), all residents of Ingalagi village in Chittapur taluk. Police said they were related to each other.

According to police, a relative of the victims had reportedly developed pneumonia-related complications on Friday night, following which eight persons travelled in the cruiser vehicle to get him admitted in a hospital in Yadgir city.

After he was admitted, five people, including the driver, were returning home when the accident occurred at around 11.40pm. A lorry from Tamil Nadu, coming in the opposite direction, allegedly collided head-on with the cruiser vehicle.

Those travelling in the cruiser vehicle died on the spot, a senior police officer said.

The impact of the collision was so severe that the front portion of the cruiser vehicle was completely crushed, he said.

Police said the lorry driver fled the scene after the accident.

A case has been registered at Wadi Police Station, and further investigation is underway.

The bodies were shifted to the Wadi Government Community Health Centre for post-mortem examination, they added.