Kicked by Berserk Horse, 5 year old dies

In the western Indian city of Pune, a 5-year old girl died after being kicked by a horse that went berserk during a procession. The horse reportedly became panicky when firecrackers started firing, just before the procession ended.

In a tragic incident that left the residents of western Indian city of Pune speechless, a 5-year old girl died after being kicked by a horse. The horse, part of a religious procession, went into a panicky mode as the firecrackers started bursting just before the procession came to an end. Seriously injured girl was taken to hospital immediately after the incident though, she later succumbed to her injuries, as suggested by the reports. According to detailed reports, the procession in Bhavani Peth, was organized on the occasion of Rath Saptami. The deceased girl had later been identified as Saliya Salim Shaikh, as the reports say. The incident reportedly took place on Monday. The local police officials however, reportedly stated that though Shree Balaji Mandir Trust, the organizers, had taken permission for the event, the information of animals such as horses, elephants and camels had been included, was not passed on to them. Senior officials while speaking on the matter stated that the application used for seeking the permission didn't include names of those animals. According to further reports, the tragic incident took place at around 7.45 pm while the procession was returning to the trust premises. The firecrackers, reportedly started bursting on the road that caused the horse to get panicky. Reports quoting some of the eyewitnesses stated that the girl was standing amongst the spectators and got hit in the head, by the horse. Though, the spectators were quick enough to get her to a private hospital, the girl succumbed on Thursday afternoon. According to local news agencies, the president of the trust, Mr. Jaya Kirad as well as an unidentified person was booked by the police for causing death due to negligence.