Nagpur: The mood outside the mortuary at Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) on Tuesday could not have been more sombre. Doctors were conducting the post mortem of three friends, Vishruti Banwari (17), Sneha Ambadkar (18) and Ruchika Borikar (18), all students of first-year commerce stream at LAD College, North Ambazari Road. Relatives and friends outside could only talk of how happy everyone was till a few hours earlier, or how things could have been so much different, if not for the moment of carelessness that cost the life of the three friends.
Suffering the most among them all was Ruchika’s close kin Bhojraj Parate, who blamed himself for having triggered the tragedy, with tears welling up. He said it was him who had purchased the scooter for Ruchika, residing at Tandapeth, to enable her to reach college on time. Incidentally, her two friends always walked to college from Hill Top, and never used a scooter, but went on this joyride with her.
Bhojraj said he had almost ‘adopted’ Ruchika and her younger sister Shreya after their father died and mother went missing. “Ruchika was four-year-old and her sister a year younger when I decided to bring them home despite having two children myself. I wanted to see the two sisters taste success in their lives, and reach a respectable position in future. The dreams were shattered in a few seconds of rashness,” said Parate in a choking voice.
Ruchika’s friends said she was an amicable person who represented LAD College in volleyball. “She was friendly. In fact, one of her friends is also learnt to have advised against going for the joyride on Tuesday,” said a friend.
The three students had apparently skipped class to go for the joyride. Just last week, police commissioner BK Upadhyay had stepped out of his car at Vayusena Nagar to counsel some students to attend classes instead of loitering on roads during school hours.
The family of the Vishruti was too stunned by the turn of events. They had been looking forward to her birthday on August 18. Sources close to the family said that her mother was very keen to publish Vishruti’s photograph in some newspaper’s birthday column.
Later in the day, the families appeared more flustered and frustrated than angry at the turn of fate, as they were made to bring the bodies of the three to the Mahametro office at Civil Lines by political activists demanding compensation for the victims and their kin.
