A 68-year-old man who was riding pillion on an app bike died after a private bus hit the two-wheeler on Strand Road on Wednesday, police said.
Both the app bike and the bus fled, the police said.
The crash was reported around 1.35pm when Somnath Chatterjee, a resident of
Belgachia Road in Howrah, was riding pillion on the app bike. The bus hit them on Strand Road at the Fairly Place crossing.
“A case has been started based on the complaint of Soumen Chatterjee, brother of the deceased. It has been found that the two-wheeler and the bus were racing against each other when the pillion rider lost balance and fell on the road. The private bus ran over his head,” said a senior police officer.
According to officers, they have identified the vehicles from CCTV footage from the area.
A search is on for the vehicles. No one had been arrested till Wednesday evening, sources said.
“Chatterjee was flung off the vehicle and suffered multiple injuries. He was taken to Medical College Kolkata, where he was declared dead at the emergency department,” said an officer of Hare Street police station.
The police said the two-wheeler and the bus sped away, leaving Chatterjee bleeding on the road.
According to sources, the fatal squad of the traffic police has taken over the investigation of the case.
CCTV footage is being checked to determine the exact sequence of events, the police said.
A case under the sections of causing death due to negligence has been started against an unknown person.
According to Kolkata Police records, buses are among the biggest causes for fatal road accidents in and around Calcutta.
“Most fatalities are caused by excessive speed and traffic rule violations,” said an officer of the rank of assistant commissioner in the traffic department.