MEERUT: A 50-year-old man from Delhi’s Shalimar Bagh involved in wholesale trade of vegetables was charred to death inside his car in UP’s Hapur district. According to police, Sanjiv Mahajan got locked in the car as soon as it caught fire on Monday afternoon on a deserted stretch in Hafizpur, Hapur district, about 90 km from Delhi.
Police suspect that the central locking of the car got disabled due to the blaze, trapping Sanjiv inside.
Farmers working in the nearby fields rushed to help Sanjiv but couldn’t as the fire spread very quickly offering no window for rescue. Local police traced Sanjiv's family from the car’s registration plate. He owned a business establishment at Azadpur vegetable mandi.
The family said Sanjiv was on his way to Hasanpur town in Amroha to meet someone.
“Sanjiv had gone to Sahibabad to collect payments. After that he left for Hasanpur in Amroha. But he took a wrong turn to Hasanpur village. The accident took place when he was returning,” said Rajiv Mahajan, the elder brother of Sanjiv.
Police have ruled out any foul play as of now.
“Sanjiv’s car was seen leaving a toll plaza. There was no one else seen with him. Locals also claimed there was no one present at the spot when his car caught fire. There is nothing suspicious which could suggest foul play,” said Sarvesh Mishra, Hapur’s additional superintendent of police.
Back home, his family was preparing for celebrations when they got to know about his death. It was Sanjiv’s 50th birthday and his nine-year-old daughter had baked a cake for the first time for him. The girl and others in the family were waiting to surprise Sanjiv when the news came. "The daughter is still hopeful and says her father had promised to return,” said Praveen Mahajan, the brother-in-law of Sanjiv, who supplies vegetables to some of Delhi's five-star hotels. Sanjiv is survived by his wife Jyoti and two children.