A network of friends, both local and from around the globe, is raising thousands of dollars to help with the medical expenses for a Columbus woman recovering from a hit-and-run incident that resulted in her husband’s death.
A gofundme account set up to help Samira Bhardwaj with medical expenses had more than $50,000 contributed after four days, with the hopes of raising $100,000.
Bhardwaj, 28, Columbus, is in stable condition at Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital, recovering from being critically injured in the March 26 hit-and-run accident that killed her husband, Anshul Sharma, 30, a Cummins Inc. engineer who had lived in Columbus for about five years.
The couple, who celebrated their first wedding anniversary in March, were walking in a buffered bike lane on Taylor Road near Lakeside Drive at 7:15 p.m. that day when they were hit from behind by a minivan, which immediately left the scene, investigators said.
Michael B. Demaio, 36, of 2023 Chandler Lane, has been accused in Bartholomew Superior Court 2 with four felonies: operating a vehicle while intoxicated resulting in death, and in injury, and failing to stop after an accident resulting in death, and in injury, court records state.
To donate to the gofundme account to help defray medical expenses for Samira Bhardwaj, 28, Columbus, visit:
gofundme.com/supportanshulsharmasfamily
For more on this story, see Wednesday’s Republic.
