Sumit Bhatia had insisted that his 14-year-old son Abhav stay on a call with him till he reached home after the IPL match between the Delhi Capitals and the Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Monday. He did not know then that it would be the last time he would hear him, and that a tragic accident would snatch him away.
Around 10.27 pm, Sumit dialled Abhav, who went to watch the match with his cousin Yagya (20). Abhav said he had a lovely time. “Papa, bohut enjoy kiya, hum aadhe ghante mein ghar pohuch jayenge (Papa, we enjoyed a lot, we will reach home in half an hour),” said the Class 9 student, seated behind his cousin on a bike cruising through the tree-lined roads of Lutyens’ Delhi.
Sumit told him not to hang up and keep talking, and Abhav did. He was very happy, he had watched his favourite cricket stars in action. And he would be celebrating his birthday in three days.
Sumit listened to his son’s live match experience with rapt attention. And then, there was a loud sound, followed by silence. Sumit kept calling out Abhav’s name, but there was no response. Minutes later, a stranger answered the call and told Sumit that his son and nephew had been in an accident.
Abhav and Yagya came under the wheels of a truck on central Delhi’s Ashoka Road. The truck drove away and the two cousins lay dead on the road till a passerby saw them and alerted the police.
At the mortuary of Ram Manohar Lohia hospital, Sumit broke down, unable to come to terms with the crushing loss of his son. The family, relatives said, had started preparations for Abhav’s birthday party before tragedy struck.
Yagya’s father, too, was inconsolable. The BSc student wanted to build a cricket career. He was part of his college’s cricket team and also bowled at professional players in the nets. His Instagram bio reads, “cricket enthusiast”, and has videos from his matches. In fact, his last post has selfies with RCB cricketers and Abhav, hours before their accident.
Police have tracked down the truck, which was loaded with debris at the time of the accident. The heavy vehicle has been seized and cops are looking for the driver, who is on the run.
Source: Theindianexpress