Foremost, I don't think anyone should trust "safest". If different cars hit a tree, more or less almost all of them will have the same damage. After all, they are made of the same materials… and they go through the same kind of inspection.
Unless a brand is pushing its car as "safe", and promoting its safety features heavily in its advertisements, you should assume that all cars are the same in this department.
This means, no matter which car you purchase, you should always be on alert with no room to be reckless. Don’t assume that "this car" is safest because someone told you so. They are all the same and demands you to be extremely careful when driving.
Now that said, there are a few cars in India under 10 lakhsthat tout comparatively much more safety features.
I know for a fact that Toyota Yaris is a great choice here. A sedan, it has essential features like 7 airbags, stability control, brake assist, disc brake, tyre pressure monitoring system, and ABS with EBD.
(Courtesy: Toyota.co.uk)
Hyundai Elite
i20 is another great choice for cars in India under 10 lakhs. Aside from mileage, Hyundai also obsesses about the longevity of its vehicles. So, comparatively, the materials it uses are of good quality. In addition, its inspection process is quite robust. i20 only costs around Rs 5.5 lakh, which makes it an ideal choice for the middle-class families.
(Courtesy: ecardlr)
Verna, another one from Hyundai, is a good option too. Costing around 8 lakh, it has 6 airbags, sensors, rear defogger, seat belt pre-tensioners and more, which makes it quite safe.
(Courtesy: Drive Spark)
Models from Maruti are also known to be good inbuilt.
Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, which costs Rs 7.5 lakh, has decent safety features like force limiters, airbags, and ABS with EBD.
(Courtesy: Drive Spark)
I have also heard people say good things about Tata Zest and Mahindra XUV 300. They have sufficient safety features. And both come at a price under 10 lakh.
(Courtesy: Auto NDTV)
These are some good options when it comes to "safest" cars in India under 10 lakh.
But again, I would say, just because a car has all the safety features, doesn’t mean it's the "safest".
Remember, the features don’t make cars safe. Drivers do!
Hope this helps!