Kurnool bus fire: Drivers booked for speeding, negligent driving

Andhra Pradesh: The Ulindakonda police have registered a case against two bus drivers for negligent driving and overspeeding in connection with the Kurnool bus fire that claimed 20 lives on Friday.

The bus headed to Bengaluru caught fire after colliding with a two-wheeler. The bike was dragged under the vehicle with its fuel cap open, triggering the fire. "We have registered a case against the two bus drivers based on a complaint from a passenger named N Ramesh, accusing them of negligence and speeding," an official told PTI. The complainant, along with his wife and children, had escaped from the bus by breaking the rear glass and sustaining a hand injury.

Among the deceased were two children and the biker, while nine individuals suffered injuries. The bodies of most passengers were charred beyond recognition.

The driver escaped the fire by jumping out of the passenger door, but failed to gauge the situation, according to a police official. Currently, both the driver, Miriyala Lakshmaiah (42) and the additional driver are in police custody. A case was filed for negligence and overspeeding on Friday.

After escaping, Lakshmaiah woke the additional driver, who was sleeping on the luggage rack at the bottom of the bus, between the front and rear wheels. When they realised they could not enter the vehicle, they started breaking the windows with a tyre-changing rod. This enabled some passengers to escape, the police said.

Some onlookers also broke a few more window panes, while others were broken from the inside by panicked passengers attempting to escape, he said. However, when the fire continued to rage and engulf the entire bus, Lakshmaiah fled the spot out of fear. Police picked him up from Kurnool on Friday afternoon. He is being held culpable for the disaster. Police booked Lakshmaiah for negligence and overspeeding.

Residents who witnessed the incident told Ramesh that the bus carrying 44 passengers rammed into the bike at high speed, dragging it for nearly 200 meters, which caused sparks and triggered the fire. Kurnool SP Vikrant Patel said, "A case has been registered at the Ulindakonda police station under section 125(a) (endangering human life), 106(1) (causing death by negligence) of the BNS Act".

As part of the probe, police seized some documents from the travel company, including an all-India permit, a transport permit, insurance documents, and others. Further, Patil said police are ascertaining the fire safety mechanisms employed by the bus operator, among others.

(With PTI inputs)