Three pedestrians killed as speeding mini bus enters crowded market
The bus was seen entering the market at an extremely high speed. The bus was being driven rashly, with no regard for road conditions or public safety
NAVI MUMBAI: Three pedestrians lost their lives after a speeding mini bus rammed through a crowded market in Mangaon area of Raigad district on Tuesday afternoon. Along with ramming into the pedestrians, the mini bus also hit a police jeep and a scooter, damaging the vehicles.
According to CCTV footage examined by the police, the bus was seen entering the market at an extremely high speed. Investigating officials said that the bus had started its journey from Mhasla and was en-route to Borivali via Mangaon. There were five passengers on board when the accident occurred.
“The bus was being driven rashly, with no regard for road conditions or public safety. The passengers inside the bus escaped uninjured,” said senior inspector Nivrutti Borhade and added that the driver, Naresh Govind Bare, 49, fled the scene immediately after the incident, but the police managed to apprehend him later.
The victims are identified as Waman Hari Pawar, 65, a resident of Khandad, Dinesh Balkrishna Shelar, 55, and his wife Deepali Dinesh Shelar, 50, both residents of Pachole. All three were out shopping when the incident occurred.
Police investigation has revealed that the bus driver did not possess a valid license to drive the vehicle. As per the police, Bare was a helper in the bus. “He seems to have been temporarily assigned to drive and was supposed to be replaced with another driver at Mangaon itself and from there, the bus was to head to Borivali with the passengers,” the investigating officer said.
A police jeep was parked in front of the civil hospital as some convicts were brought for a medical checkup and was hit by the speeding bus. The police shared that the convicts and policemen parked the jeep and entered the hospital just a few moments before the incident and added, “It was sheer luck that the convicts and policemen were not in the vehicle.”
In the aftermath of the accident, angry locals staged a protest, demanding urgent road safety measures citing a series of recent accidents along the same stretch of road. Authorities have promised a thorough investigation and review of traffic conditions in the area.
A case has been registered under sections 106(1) (causing death by negligence), 281 (rash driving) and 125(A) and (B) (acts endangering lives and personal safety of others) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, as well as sections 184 (driving dangerously) and 134 (duty of driver) of the Motor Vehicles Act. The FIR was based on a complaint lodged by Prakash Balkrishna Ubhare, 45, a fish seller whose two-wheeler was crushed by the bus.