Four persons, including a jawan of the Tripura State Rifles (TSR), were killed when a speeding vehicle hit a police van in Unakoti district in the midnight of Wednesday.

Police sources said that they have started an investigation into the incident to find out whether there was any foul play.

The incident took place on Wednesday night when the police vehicle was parked beside the road at Chirkote in Kailashahar police station area. The police team was conducting routine patrolling on the Kailashahar-Kumarghat highway.

Police added that four people lost their lives in a tragic road accident at Chirakuti. The incident occurred around midnight on Wednesday when a speeding SUV Innova car (TR-02-M-0599) coming from Kumarghat rammed into a parked police vehicle.

The deceased have been identified as Sajjad Ali (driver and owner of the car) from Bhagabannagar, Aktar Ali, Banbir Shabdakar, and TSR personnel Milon Debbarma, a resident of Khowai district. Eyewitnesses reported that the police vehicle had a flat tire, and TSR jawans were changing it at the time. The speeding Innova first hit Milon Debbarma and then crashed onto the police vehicle.

The injured were rushed to Unakoti District Hospital, where doctors declared all four dead. A pall of grief has descended over the area following the accident.

Some locals have raised questions about why the car was speeding so late at night. There are also demands to investigate whether the vehicle was involved in any illegal activities.

"It appears that excessive speed of the car might be the cause of the incident. We have started an investigation to find out whether there was any foul play. Senior police officers and a forensic team have visited the spot to probe the circumstances that led to the fatal road accident, said SDPO (Kailashahar), Jayanta Karmakar.