Kurla BEST bus crash: Driver’s lawyer alleges attempt to shield BEST staff, contractors

Sanjay More being produced at the Kurla court the day after the incident. File pic

Four days after the Kurla bus tragedy, though the driver of the electric vehicle, Sanjay More, is in police custody, the cops are yet to initiate action against Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) staff and the wet-lease contractor. According to Samadhan Surane, the lawyer representing More, the latter are primarily at fault for allowing More to handle the bus without imparting sufficient training.

Expressing displeasure with the investigation so far, Surane said, "It is quite evident that Sanjay More had not been provided with any training by the BEST and the contractor, but the police are yet to make them co-accused in the case."

Samadhan Surane, lawyer of Sanjay More, the driver of the bus that mowed down seven people in Kurla on December 9. Pic/Kirti Surve Parade

According to the Kurla police, More, 54, was arrested as he was driving bus no. 332 from Kurla to Andheri. "He was driving quite negligently. He was speeding when he lost control of the electric bus. The Kurla magistrate court has remanded him in police custody till December 21. We are still investigating the matter," said a senior police officer privy to the investigation.

Surane said, "Aren't the sub-contractor and contractor to be blamed for giving More no training? The police are not investigating the matter thoroughly; they need to get to the root cause of the accident. The BEST and others should not get away with such an offence."

PoliceSpeak

According to the police, the BEST had given a contract to Olectra Greentech Ltd to lease buses and the company hired a sub-contractor to hire drivers.

The Kurla police are examining legal documents to determine whether any co-accused could be added to the FIR. "We are waiting for several documents to reach us. We are scrutinising all the documents on hand to check whether we can add any co-accused in the FIR and action will be taken as per the law," a police officer said on the condition of anonymity.

According to the police, some of the crucial documents are awaited from the RTO. "These will help us to determine whether there were any faults with the bus. They have stated verbally that the vehicle was faulty but we are waiting for them to officially give us the report," the officer said.

The police have scrutinised CCTV footage from inside the BEST bus and have recorded statements of 30 bus passengers so far. "From the footage, it is clear that the bus was speeding and the driver had lost control of the vehicle," the officer stated.