Chamarajnagar (Karnataka), Jul 10 (IANS): In a tragic incident, a five-year-old boy was killed after a tractor ran over him on Friday, following which the 28-year-old youth who drove the tractor committed suicide by consuming pesticide, the police said.

According to Gundlupet police, the deceased has been identified as Harsha, while the youth who committed suicide has been identified as Sunil. The incident took place at a village in Gundlupet taluk in Chamarajpet district.

The police said that the accident occurred when Harsha was playing in a ground where Sunil along with his friends was levelling the area using a tractor to play cricket.

"Sunil, who was pursuing his PhD from the University of Mysore, had come to meet his relatives in the village. He along with his friends hit upon the idea to level a nearby ground in order to convert it into a cricket field. Three of his friends had borrowed three tractors, and Sunil was driving one of them," the police said.

Prima facie investigation has revealed that Sunil did not know how to drive a tractor properly, due to which he perhaps lost control and hit Harsha who was playing there, the police said.

"Though the child was immediately rushed to the hospital, a shocked Sunil ran from the spot and later committed suicide by consuming pesticide at his relative's house in Mysuru after he learnt of Harsha's death," the police said.