Road accidents do happen all the time. Even if you are a careful driver, the callousness or lack of attention of another driver may result in one. Or vice versa! But sometimes there is no other driver involved. You are the only one. The other ‘party’ could be a child crossing the road without paying attention to the traffic or an old man who you thought would cross the road before you reach him but somehow miscalculate or a two-wheeler driver who may have suddenly appeared from behind your vehicle or a by-lane to take you over.
You hit the person or the vehicle and in a flash decide to flee the scene. Many drivers do so at their own peril. The arms of the law are long indeed as the saying goes. So never hope or expect that just because the road is deserted or you have the clear space in front to make a run you could avoid being brought to book.
Consider these consequences:
– Majority of roads are now monitored by CCTV cameras so the entire sequence of event may have been recorded for the police to examine it.
– A passerby or bystander may have noted down [or snapped on mobile phone] your vehicle number as you were fleeing.
– You may have left behind enough forensic evidence on the scene without your knowledge – a broken piece of headlight or bumper, for example, if nothing else. If your car screeched as you unsuccessfully tried to stop it, even the tyre marks on the road could be used as evidence.
In any case it is both criminal and unethical to flee the scene after causing an accident. More so if the person you have hit is grievously injured. It is you duty in such a scenario to stop your vehicle, phone the traffic police and the ambulance service and offer whatever assistance you can to the injured. Try first-aid if you know how to, offer water, and see if you could yourself carry the person to hospital.
Remember, time is of the essence in many cases of grievous injuries. Also remember that by informing police you are considerably reducing the chances of being awarded a heavy punishment for causing the accident.
But as stated above, there is no escaping the law by fleeing the scene. You may merely delay the consequences by fleeing, by making police work a little harder. But ultimately you are bound to hear their knock on your door. On the contrary, by calling police and assisting them by truthfully narrating the sequence that ended up in the accident you might get away with a lighter punishment.