LUCKNOW, March 18 -- A 17-year-old's fatal stunting accident near Janeshwar Mishra Park, Lucknow, has exposed an uncomfortable truth: parents themselves are fuelling a dangerous culture where teenagers ride high-powered motorcycles through city roads. Class 12 student Naitik Kumar on Sunday morning has reignited the debate on parental responsibility, with road safety experts questioning why parents continue to gift expensive, powerful bikes to teenagers. What begins as parents fulfilling a child's demand for an expensive bike often ends in tragedy. In Kumar's case, his parents allegedly purchased the high-end motorcycle worth Rs 4.5 lakhs after he pressured them. Ashutosh Soti, founder of the Shubham Soti Foundation, pivoted to road safety advocacy after losing his teenage son in a road accident in 2010. Since then, he has run awareness campaigns across schools and communities to prevent similar incidents. "The main role belongs to the parents, as they are the ones providing these high-powered bikes. Children often pressure them, and many give in without fully understanding the risks," Soti said. Investigators report that many teenagers involved in stunting lack experience yet have access to powerful machines capable of high speeds. Social media further fuels the trend as youngsters record and upload videos of risky stunts to gain views and followers. In the recent case, videos surfaced online soon after the accident, drawing criticism over reckless riding and insensitive posting. Soti stressed that enforcement alone cannot address the issue. He added that technology-driven systems such as ITMS can only penalise violations. "Challans cannot eradicate the problem. Behavioural change has to start early," he said....