Alwar: Hundreds of angry villagers blocked the Alwar-Thanagazi-Jaipur road Sunday after a collision between two vehicles left one person dead and a dozen others injured. One of the vehicles involved in the accident was a ‘jugad vehicle’, a home-made automobile built from scrapped parts and motors. It was carrying around 30 people when it collided with another vehicle and overturned. According to the police, the vehicle was carrying people from Arniya village in Bandikui to a joint mahapanchayat of the Denotified Tribes (DNT) and Nath community that had been organized in the Bharthari Dham area under the Akbarpur police station area. On the way, the vehicle got into an accident in which Lakshman Nath (65) died on the spot and several others were injured, who were rushed to Akbarpur Hospital.After the accident, hundreds of Nath community members heading to the mahapanchayat reached the accident site and blocked the highway by placing the victim’s body on the road, leading to a traffic jam stretching nearly seven kms. They protested, demanding seizure of the vehicle that caused the accident, arrest of the culprit, compensation of Rs 1 crore, and a government job for the deceased’s family.Akbarpur police reached the spot and tried to persuade the protesters to end the blockade. As the situation escalated, Malakheda SDM Navjyoti Kanwariya reached the site and held discussions with a five-member community delegation. Representatives of the Nath community later also submitted a memorandum to the SDM. Around 5 PM, following assurance from the SDM, the roadblock was lifted, and the deceased’s family also consented to a post-mortem.The blockade disrupted traffic for more than five hours, leaving several commuters, including REET exam candidates, stranded.
