Family's worst fears come true, second crash proves fatal

The warning signs were there for Supriyo Ray, who lost his life in a high-speed crash on AJC Bose flyover on Tuesday afternoon. The boy's love for speed had the family worried. His father was against buying him a bike because he was worried of rash driving, says Supriyo's private tutor Tapan Dam.
Last year, this 18-year-old boy had a narrow escape at Hazra.Then, too, he was riding pillion with one of his friends, said Dam. "He was badly injured. I had warned him against getting into bike races. He did not have a bike, but he had friends to lure him into riding pillion," Dam said, lamenting the loss of a "budding career". "He wanted to move to Pune for higher studies in commerce," Dam said.
Neighbours thronged Supriyo's Ramgarh residence since early on Wednesday morning. When the TOI team arrived, there was a tight group around Silpi Ray, Supriyo's mother. She was in a state of shock and could barely speak. "She is yet to face the truth that her son is no more. She is in a state of complete shock and has stopped eating or drinking since yesterday," Sukla Chakraborty, the landlady said. Chakraborty has fond memories of Supriyo who would call her ‘jemma' (aunt). "Supriyo was an introvert and hardly would mix with other young boys of the locality. He was obedient and we never saw him breaking discipline," she said.
Chakraborty then went back to console Supriyo's mother who would be weeping and tossing in her bed one moment, and murmuring ‘how will I live without Jeet' the next. She clutched a childhood photo album of her son. "She will have to live for her six-month-old daughter. We have kept the baby with us," said Krishna Chakraborty, Sukla's sister-in-law. Supriyo was very fond of his sister and would call her Jia, said Sukla. The family members and the neighbours are now waiting for Supriyo's father who lives in America. "We have informed him about the mishap," said a family member.
Supriyo's neighbours are all praise for Asish Chowdhury, who did his best to save Supriyo's life. "It is a shame that nobody stopped to lend a helping hand to a dying kid. At least Asishbabu had the guts to stop at the site," said Sukla.
Atif Rehman, who was driving the bike that crashed, was discharged from Chittaranajn National Medical College and Hospital on Tuesday. His house, on 22/2 Karaya Road, was found under lock and key. Neigbhours said that the boy was disturbed after the accident and his family has left for a relative's place.