Mumbai: 84-year-old Bhandup man crushed by BEST bus

Driver lost control while navigating a curve and hit watchman Pundlik Bhagat who was returning from work

An 84-year-old man was crushed between the wheels of a BEST bus and an electric meter cabin in Bhandup West, when the driver lost control of the vehicle while taking a turn. Two other people sustained minor injuries in the accident, which took place on Wednesday morning. Based on preliminary investigation, the Bhandup police have booked the driver.

Pundlik Bhagat

The incident occurred around 7.15 am on Wednesday, when the BEST bus travelling on route number 605 was returning from Tembhipada to Bhandup railway station (west). When the bus reached Ashok Kedar Chowk, the driver lost control of the vehicle while taking the turn and dashed into an electric meter cabin. It then hit an auto-rickshaw coming from the opposite direction. While one man got crushed between the bus’s right wheel and the electric cabin, two others sustained injuries.

All three were rushed to MT Agarwal Hospital, Mulund, where 84-year-old Pundlik Bhagat was declared dead on arrival. The other two victims were treated in the OPD. They have been identified as Ravindra Tiwari, 65, and Mukesh Chandra Upadhyay, 44.

The bus hit an electric meter cabin at the Ashok Kedar Chowk turn

Bhagat was a resident of Utkarsh Nagar in Bhandup. He was living with his wife and worked as a watchman in a nearby building. The incident happened when he was returning home after completing night duty.

The Bhandup cops have booked the bus driver Baban Ananda Mane, 54, under IPC sections 304A (causing death by negligence) 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others), 279 (rash driving), 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of fifty rupees) and relevant sections of the Motor Vehicle Act.

Also read: South Mumbai gets an all-electric BEST bus fleet

Speaking to mid-day, Ramesh Khanwilkar, educationist and a local resident, said, “The turn at the chowk is a risky one. The BMC had removed a shop from the spot a couple of years ago and given an alternative space to the owner, but it has come up in the same place again. This makes it very difficult for the motorists to gauge the turn. Cops should not just book the driver but conduct an inquiry against all those responsible.”

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