Nagpur: What should have been a festive journey home for Raksha Bandhan turned into a scene of unimaginable grief for 36-year-old labourer Amit Bhura Yadav. Drenched in rain and numb with shock, he rode nearly 70 kilometres from Morfata to Lonara with his wife’s lifeless body tied to the back of his motorcycle — a desperate act that was caught on video and went viral, sparking anger and disbelief across social media.
Amit and his wife, Gyarasi (35), both originally from Karanpur in Madhya Pradesh’s Seoni district, had been working in Lonara for over a decade to provide for their 15-year-old daughter. On Sunday, August 10 afternoon, they set out on their motorcycle (MH 40 DB 1983) to visit their native village, hoping to spend the festival with family.
But at around 3.30 pm, as they crossed Morfata in Deolapar Police Station limits, a speeding Eicher truck approached from behind, brushed past their bike, and knocked Gyarasi under its wheels. She died instantly. Heavy rain pelted down as Amit, still reeling from the crash, tried to wave down passing vehicles for help — but no one stopped.
“In that moment, I wasn’t thinking straight,” Amit later told reporters, his voice trembling. “Seoni was just 55 kilometres ahead, but I kept thinking of going back to Lonara, our home. I tied my wife’s body to the seat behind me and started riding. I didn’t know what else to do.”
Midway through the journey, personnel from the Highway Traffic Police stopped him and asked where he was headed. Still in shock, Amit barely spoke before resuming his ride. It was only after the Koradi police, along with Highway cops, alerted the Deolapar police that the tragedy was fully uncovered.
Deolapar Police’s API Narayan Turkunde-Patil said they had been informed of an accident but were unable to locate the victim at the scene. “We received a call around 3.30 pm about an accident near Morfata. When our team reached, we found clear signs of a mishap but no body. We checked with the government hospital, but there was no record either. The victim was already being taken away by her husband,” he explained.
Once traced, Gyarasi’s body was sent to Mayo Hospital for post-mortem before being handed over to the family. Her last rites were performed in Lonara on Monday. Police have registered a case against the driver of the Eicher truck and further investigation is underway.
