Overview
- The collision happened late on Thursday night on National Highway 150A near Tumakuruhalli Gate in Chitradurga district when a Tata Indigo lost control and hit a stationary lorry.
- Police identified the five victims as Raghavendra (40), Pramod (36), Rudresh (30), Somashekar (35) and Mallikarjuna (35), all residents of Challakere.
- Officers said a tyre reportedly burst, causing the driver to lose control and the car to ram the rear of the parked lorry, crushing the vehicle and killing all occupants on the spot.
- Molakalmuru police registered a case under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, moved the bodies for postmortem at a government hospital and said further enquiries are ongoing.
- The group had been returning from a Bakrid feast and the deaths include Pramod, a two‑time Janata Dal (Secular) councillor, a loss that local officials say has shaken the Challakere community and may prompt scrutiny of roadside parking and highway safety.