Thiruvananthapuram: The crime branch investigating the death of violinist Balabhaskar and his daughter simulated the car accident in which both of them died.
The team crashed an Innova car similar to the one involved in the accident into a tree at the spot of the accident at Pallippuram to assess the damage.
The young musician met with an untimely death when he was travelling to his hometown in Thiruvananthapuram after visiting a temple in Thrissur on September 25.
The child died instantly. Balabhaskar died in a hospital. His wife Lakshmi and driver Arjun were injured.
The recreation of the accident in the presence of inspectors of the motor vehicles and a forensic team started at 1pm on Wednesday. Motor vehicle inspector Vinod Lal was behind the wheel during the test.
He drove fast past a KSRTC bus and halted yards away from the wayside tree on which Balabhaskar’s car had crashed. He then went ahead and crashed into the tree, at a lower speed and without turning the steering wheel.
The investigators wanted to see the extent of damage and the possibility of an over-speeding vehicle losing control and crashing into the tree.
The experiments were repeated at different angles.
Representatives of the car manufacturers were also present. The police relied on witness testimony that the car had overtaken a bus before crashing into the tree.
According to documents handed over to the crime branch by the motor vehicles department, Balabhaskar’s car was zooming past the speed limits.
When the family started from Thrissur at 11:30pm, driver Arjun was at the wheel.
The car was spotted by a surveillance camera at Chalakkudi at 1:08 am at a speed of 94 kilometres per hour.
At 3:45 am, it crashed at Pallippuram. The car took only 2.37 hours to cover 231 kilometres from Chalakkudi to Pallipuram.
The investigators are yet to figure out who drove the car at the time of the accident. Balabhaskar’s wife had said Arjun was at the wheel.
Though Arjun initially corroborated the statement, he changed his version later. Even the eyewitness accounts varied.
The probe team is waiting for forensic results to proceed with the case. A forensic team had examined the site last week.
The case was handed over to the crime branch on a request by Balabhaskar’s father, who alleged foul play in the accident.
The investigation is being led by crime branch deputy superintendent of police Hari Krishnan.
The case became murkier when two of Balabhaskar’s aides, Prakashan Thambi and Vishnu, were accused of smuggling gold through the Thiruvananthapuram airport.
