MTC bus killed victim’s dad two years ago

Seventeen-year-old Vijayan, who was among the four killed in the MTC bus accident on Old Mahabalipuram Road on Monday, had lost his father in an accident involving an MTC bus two years ago.

Vijayan, who had scored 439 out of 500 in the Class X Board exams, lost his father Udayakumar at the time of his Social Science exam.  An MTC bus ran over Udayakumar while he was walking near the Adyar Signal near Malar Hospital. Vijayan, a resident of Kannagi Nagar, had always been a bright student, said his friends.

He is survived by his mother Arpudam and sisters Vimala and Vinodhini. “He could have been a breadwinner for the entire family,” said Vijayan’s cousin Gopi, fighting back tears.

Like Vijayan, another victim Balamurugan, (16), too was the lone male member of the family, which includes his mother Mahalakshmi and sisters Kalaiselvi and Nandini.  An inconsolable Mahalakshmi charged that no bus halted at Kannagi Nagar stop and her son had to leave home around 6 am to walk to the next bus stop to reach school. “Not just my son, every other child living in Kannagi Nagar is affected because of the irregular services and the lethargy of the MTC crew,” she added.

Manoj, another victim, was a second-year EEE diploma student of the Central Polytechnic College. His brothers, Ranjith and Sibi Chakravarthi, were seen consoling their father Rajkumar, a mason, at the Royapettah GH mortuary.

The family of Gnana Sekar (19), a first-year B Com student of Government Nandanam Arts and Science College, was the last to reach the GH, with his uncle Pitchumani lamenting the delay in communication. His father is a businessman in Krishnagiri and the family lives in Perungudi.