Dream vacation turns tragic as Central Park carriage ride ends in death

An 18-year-old Indian tourist, Romanch Mahajan, on his family’s first trip to the United States, was killed when a Central Park carriage horse bolted during a photo, throwing him from the buggy; his mother was injured, his brother survived, and his father shielded the younger child. The horse, Sampson, was retired and carriage operations were paused for safety reviews under a Transport Workers Union safety stand-down. The incident has renewed calls for a ban on horse carriages in NYC, with the family and aunt Sovia Thukral alleging negligence and criticizing the unattended-horse rule.