The Gurugram hit-and-run case has brought into sharp focus issues concerning the fragility of road safety and the irresponsible post-mishap behaviour of fleeing the scene. In the incident on Golf Course Road, a speeding car hit a biker, sending her skidding onto the road, while the occupants of the car did not rush to help the injured rider and instead fled the scene. Initial conflicting versions were offered by the injured woman biker and the car driver, a local resident involved in real estate who ran a gym as well.

The incident gained prominence after the young woman, who was riding a powerful, high-speed sports bike and wearing safety gear, uploaded a dramatic video clip taken from her bike camera. The Haryana Police sprang into action by registering a suo motu case and launching a manhunt until the suspects were caught in their dragnet. Thus, the video clip played a catalytic role; in its absence, the incident could have been dismissed as yet another routine road accident, particularly as three separate road accidents occurred around the same time, claiming two lives.

First, a gender dimension in this case cannot be missed. Available information regarding the man driving the sedan points to a regressive patriarchal mindset and smacks of toxic misogyny. This aspect has been widely discussed on social media, with a senior police officer who later entered politics attributing the accident to a bruised male ego and the primitive urge to assert male dominance. Research and anecdotal evidence indicate the widespread prevalence of such a mindset, especially among certain sections of society characterised by recently acquired wealth, a sense of impunity stemming from considerable political clout, and a general disdain for complying with rules and regulations.

Second, the conduct of vehicle drivers vanishing from the scene turns an accident into a hit-and-run case. Such a getaway is ethically wrong and, equally important, constitutes a serious offence under law. In hit-and-run cases, the hackneyed defence or justification proffered is the fear of a mob attack. Vigilante mobs taking the law into their hands to deliver instant justice is symptomatic of the increasing loss of faith in the formal judicial system whose mills grind excruciatingly slow. The glorification of vigilante justice in cinema has also contributed in no small measure to the justification and normalisation of unlawful, extrajudicial violence.

The government should adopt a two-pronged strategy to prevent the occurrence of hit-and-run cases. The new penal code has stringent provisions relating to such cases, where the guilty can be sentenced to up to 10 years of imprisonment. Surveillance infrastructure — including CCTV cameras, automated number plate recognition, public reporting apps in cities, and dashcams in automobiles — can add to deterrence and promote responsible driving. This should be complemented by broader campaigns to counter the perils of normalisation of indifference and apathy, and the hollowing out of moral accountability. Along with improving driving skills training, driver education initiatives should include spreading awareness about the perils of the impulsive psychological reaction of "fleeing due to panic", which deprives victims of critical medical attention during the golden hour and costs precious human lives. Such a value system will be the cornerstone of a responsive and compassionate society.