Overview

• Police said a metal chariot in a Janmashtami procession at Gokulnagar, Ramanthapur, contacted overhead wires around midnight, killing five on the spot and injuring four.
• Eyewitnesses said the towing vehicle ran out of fuel, the chariot was pulled by hand, and nine men received shocks; victims included Krishna Yadav, Suresh Yadav, Srikanth Reddy, Rudra Vikas and Rajendra Reddy, with a sixth, Ganesh, succumbing later.
• Police registered a case as the District Collector leads a formal probe; minister D. Sridhar Babu announced Rs 5 lakh ex gratia per family and pledged to fund treatment for the injured.
• TGSPDCL’s CMD said a snapped TV cable fell onto an 11 kV line that then energized the chariot and asserted there was no utility negligence.
• Residents protested long‑ignored, low‑hanging wires and demanded route inspections and insulated lines, while separate idol processions in Bandlaguda and Amberpet saw two and one deaths respectively, with police investigating and the utility disputing electrocution in Bandlaguda.