Chaos broke out at Sahid Nagar in Siliguri on Wednesday night after a drunk driver ploughed his car into a number of vehicles and two-wheelers before toppling into a roadside ditch, leaving three bystanders injured.

The incident triggered outrage among residents who pulled the driver out of the car and thrashed him, before handing him over to a team from the Bhaktinagar police station that rushed to the spot.

Police confirmed that the driver was intoxicated.

Eyewitnesses described the reckless manner in which the vehicle zigzagged through the narrow road.

“The driver was speeding like he had lost control. He kept ramming into two-wheelers parked by the roadside and even hit people standing near shops. After hitting a number of vehicles, the car went off the road and fell into a ditch. Or else, some more people could have been hurt,” said a resident.

The injured were rushed to a private nursing home for treatment.

But beyond the immediate shock of the accident, the anger of residents in Sahid Nagar spilled over into frustration at alleged civic negligence.

The residents complained that the poor state of the road and the lack of streetlights made the stretch particularly unsafe at night.

“This is not the first time such an accident has happened here. We keep requesting the Siliguri Municipal Corporation to repair the road and install proper lights, but nothing has changed. Last night (Wednesday), darkness made it worse as no one saw the car coming until it was too late,” said shopkeeper Rakesh Agarwal.

The battered stretch has become a recurring grievance for those living in the neighbourhood. Residents allege that the civic body has failed to act despite repeated complaints.

“Every year we hear promises, but the potholes remain and lights do not work. This negligence cost people their safety,” said Maya Roy, one of Wednesday’s eyewitnesses.

A case has been registered against the driver, a police officer said.