NRI Driver Arrested After Hit-and-Run Kills 114-Year-Old Marathoner Fauja Singh; SUV Seized

NRI Driver Arrested After Hit-and-Run Kills 114-Year-Old Marathoner Fauja Singh: The man who allegedly hit 114-year-old marathon runner Fauja Singh on the Jalandhar-Pathankot highway has been arrested, police said on Wednesday.

Amritpal Singh Dhillon, a 26-year-old non-resident Indian (NRI), was arrested two days after Singh, popularly known as 'Turbaned Tornado', suffered head injuries in a hit-and-run accident while he was crossing the road at his native village near Jalandhar in Punjab. Singh was taken to the hospital, where he later died.

Officials told HT that Singh came from Canada eight days ago and recently purchased a white Toyota Fortuner (PB 20c7100) from a Kapurthala resident.

Officials further added that the accused hails from Dasupur village of Kartarpura sub-division in Jalandhar district.

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Before the arrest of the driver, Punjab police identified the SUV involved in the accident. As per police, the car - a white Toyota Fortuner - was seized by the police today.

According to villagers, Singh was tossed 5-7 feet in the air after being hit by the vehicle.

Sources said the accused's family lives abroad and had he returned to his native place recently.

But an official said the accused was being questioned and more details would come out soon.

The police had recovered fragments of the vehicle’s headlight from the scene, which proved to be important clues in the investigation and led to the identification of the accused, the SSP said. He added that an FIR has been registered at Adampur Police Station under Sections 281 and 105 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to X to pay tribute to Fauja Singh and said, “Fauja Singh Ji was extraordinary because of his unique persona and the manner in which he inspired the youth of India on a very important topic of fitness. He was an exceptional athlete with incredible determination. Pained by his passing away. My thoughts are with his family and countless admirers around the world.”

Born in Beas village on April 1, 1911, Fauja Singh was the youngest of four children in a farming family. It was in 1993 that he immigrated to England to be with one of his sons after his wife Gian Kaur’s death. During his time in England, Singh started long walks and running in public parks near his Ilford home.

After coming in contact with marathon coach Harmander Singh, Fauja Singh competed in the London Marathon in April 2000 at the age of 89 and completed it in 6 hours and 54 minutes, bettering the earlier world record in the senior age category by 58 minutes.He ran London 6 times, Toronto 2 times and New York 1 time.

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