Bruised but Unbowed, Sia Vows to Ride Again After Gurugram Hit-and-Run

A biker recovering from injuries sustained in an alleged deliberate hit-and-run in Gurugram has said she will return to riding, even as she continues to struggle with the physical and mental aftermath of the incident.

Sia, who is nursing an injured left leg and walking with difficulty, made the remark while joining a televised conversation with a group of women bikers. She said she did not yet know when she would feel mentally ready to ride again, but later struck a more certain note: she would be back on the bike soon.

Recounting the moments before the crash, Sia said four men in a car had gestured at her to stop, which made her fear for her safety. She accelerated to create distance and signalled to them to stay away, hoping they would realise she was uncomfortable. Instead, she said, the car chased her continuously, visible in her rear-view mirror, as she tried to get off that road. She said she never expected anyone to do what followed, adding that at worst she had assumed unruly comments would be the extent of it. Then the vehicle hit her, and she did not immediately grasp what had happened.

Sia acknowledged that she had not been wearing her riding jacket, saying she owned one but had skipped it because of the weather and had decided to ride slowly. She called that a mistake. The episode, she said, left her with a larger realisation: however safely one rides and stays in lane, the intentions of others can never be assumed.

Other women bikers in the conversation said the problem extends well beyond one road or one machine. Jasvinder Kaur, a long-time rider, said women face unwanted attention even on a scooter, and that she has dealt with such behaviour since childhood. Another rider, Zia, pointed to cases of women being harassed and touched on the road. Devi, who has ridden for four decades, said footage of the incident showed the driver hitting Sia deliberately before fleeing, while Pavitra said the fact that he ran away indicated he knew what he had done.

Sia directed sharp criticism at the delay in arresting the accused and at public statements made by them, asking how they were allowed time to speak to the media and why the arrests took so long. In her view, the absence of immediate and strict action breeds a lack of fear of the law, and firm consequences would make people think twice. She also said she was shocked by those speaking in support of the accused, and asked what argument they would have made had she died in the crash, or if the victim had been a member of their own family.

The discussion turned to how boys are raised, with Sia saying the mindset needs to change and that families play a central role. She said she had been brought up as an equal at home and never made to feel she was a girl. Her father, she recalled, had worried when she bought her nearly 200-kg motorcycle, asking how she would ride it on Indian roads.

Despite the pain in her leg and the difficulty in walking, Sia's message to other women riders was one of defiance. She said there was no need to be afraid, that she would ride again, always with full gear because others' intentions cannot be predicted, and that passion should not be abandoned because of a few troublemakers on the road. It is for the system, she said, to deal with them.