A 65-year-old businessman was charred to death after the car he was driving caught fire following a collision with a wall at Madathilmukku near Chevayur in Kozhikode, early on Wednesday (September 2, 2026).

The deceased was identified as C.P. Sudhakaran, a resident of Chevayur. The accident occurred around 4 a.m. when Sudhakaran was travelling to Koyilandy for business purposes.

According to police sources, the car reportedly lost control while descending a steep slope and first hit a structure near a roadside transformer before crashing into a wall. The vehicle reportedly caught fire soon after, they said.

Local residents noticed the accident around 4.45 a.m. and rushed to the spot, but the car was already engulfed in flames. Fire and Rescue Services personnel later reached the spot and extinguished the fire. Sudhakaran‘s body was recovered with the support of a Fire and Rescue service team.

The Medical College police have initiated a probe into the incident as some of the local residents expressed suspicion over the trigger behind the accident. A partly-burnt container, reportedly used for purchasing petrol, was also recovered from the vehicle. The body was shifted to Kozhikode Medical College Hospital for post-mortem examination.