Kurla BEST bus crash: Court denies bail to driver Sanjay More

MUMBAI: A sessions court on Friday rejected the bail plea of Sanjay More, the driver of an electric BEST bus that rammed into pedestrians and multiple vehicles in Kurla West on the night of December 9, killing seven and injuring 42 others.

The incident occurred around 9:30 pm when More, driving a 12-metre-long Olectra electric bus—the longest in the BEST fleet—lost control of the vehicle on SG Barve Marg. The bus ploughed through approximately 22 vehicles and travelled around 200 metres before coming to a halt after colliding with a cemented gate leading to Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Nagar.

Initially, More claimed that a brake failure caused the accident. However, the regional transport office later confirmed that the electric bus was mechanically sound. More underwent a psychological evaluation, which showed he was not mentally ill, and blood tests revealed that he was not under the influence of alcohol while driving.

More’s sudden transition from manual, geared, diesel vehicles to an automatic electric bus on December 1 after only three training sessions has come under scrutiny. BEST’s internal standard operating procedures require drivers to undergo six weeks of training when transitioning from manual to automatic electric buses. However, a BEST official earlier told Hindustan Times that More completed a refresher course of just three days, violating the organisation’s standard practices.

More’s advocates, Samadhan Sulane and Yogita Gade, argued that he was being scapegoated in the incident. During the bail hearing, the defence maintained that the accident occurred due to a mechanical fault in the bus. “If the BEST officials had provided proper training to More, this accident could have been averted,” said Sulane, questioning why police excluded the contractors from the investigation. Under BEST’s wet-lease contract system, private contractors supply buses and drivers to BEST, which pays them a fixed amount. Sulane added that they plan to appeal the decision in the High Court.

When More was presented before the magistrate court for remand, his defence submitted that he had been driving four-wheelers since 1989 and lost control of the bus due to a mechanical malfunction. The police had sought his custody to investigate whether he was adequately trained to operate the vehicle and to explore the possibility of any premeditated motive or conspiracy. The magistrate court had remanded him to police custody until December 21.