Incident Overview
A video clip circulated widely on social media showing a remote-controlled car crashing into a parked police van during a demonstration in Islamabad, Pakistan. The incident occurred at D-Chowk, near the country's Parliament House, a high-security area with little traffic. In the footage, the driver's seat appears empty, with journalist Muhammad Aalijah seated in the front passenger seat, recording as the vehicle moves forward.
According to Aalijah, the car was being operated remotely using satellite and internet connections, with controls handled by an operator outside the vehicle. As he explained the car's features, the steering wheel, controlled remotely, suddenly went out of control, and the car bumped into the police van parked along the road. Aalijah is seen pulling the handbrake in an attempt to stop the vehicle, but his efforts prove futile.
The crash caused minor damage, and no injuries were reported.
Cause and Explanation
In a video shared after the incident, Aalijah explained that the car had been working normally until an internet disruption caused a technical fault. He also linked the problem to rainy weather. Speaking to Dawn, Aalijah said, "Everything was fine until a technical fault occurred due to an internet disruption, causing the car to go out of control and crash into a police vehicle."
Aalijah elaborated that the car was controlled remotely over the internet and that a sudden loss of connection caused it to go out of control. He noted that the system was not yet "completely safe and reliable," adding that the vehicle was being operated through satellite and internet connections, but during external control, it went out of control as soon as the internet connection was disconnected and collided with a police vehicle.
Background and Purpose
Aalijah told Dawn that he had been asked by technology enthusiast Ehsan Zafar of Abbottabad to report on Zafar's tech-based automated-driving innovation. In a social media post on Monday, Aalijah said his intention in making the video was "never to defame or target this young man," who owned and operated the car. "The sole purpose was to raise awareness and urge people to remain cautious until any new experiment or technology has been thoroughly tested, proven safe and established as a complete success," he said, describing the video as "a message of caution, not an attempt to discredit anyone."
Aalijah warned that if the same situation had occurred on a busy road, the consequences could have been "extremely dangerous, even fatal." He emphasized that the incident occurred in a high-security area with very little traffic. "This video is not criticism; it is a responsible effort to raise awareness and issue a warning — by all means, experiment, but ensure safety first," he added.
The incident has drawn attention to the growing field of autonomous and remotely operated vehicles. Companies such as Waymo operate commercial robotaxis in the US, Tesla is developing its Full Self-Driving system, and in China, companies including Baidu, ai and WeRide are testing autonomous services in several cities.