A milk van that was apparently speeding mounted a footpath along Circus Avenue on Sunday morning and ran over a footpath dweller, killing him.
An officer of the traffic department of the city police said the van hit a car parked along the road before running over a man who was sleeping on the footpath, near the crossing of Circus Avenue and Naseeruddin Road.
“The milk van came to a halt after the accident. The vehicle was seized but the driver fled,” the officer said.
The man who was sleeping was taken to SSKM Hospital, where he was declared dead.
“Residents of the locality said the victim used to sleep on the pavement. We are trying to collect his personal details so we can trace his family,” said an officer at Karaya police station.
“Some of the residents also said the vehicle was speeding.”
The vehicle will undergo a mechanical test to ascertain whether any snag had caused the accident.
The owner of the milk van was summoned to Karaya police station. He was made to connect with the driver.
“The driver will be arrested and charged with causing death due to negligence and rash and negligent driving,” an officer said.
In a city where a considerable part of the population lives under flyovers or on footpaths, such accidents can be avoided only if motorists comply with traffic rules and maintain the speed limit, the police said.