Delhi: 2 die as DTC bus rams vehicles near Azadpur station, driver flees, arrested later
A DTC bus crashed into two e-rickshaws and one auto outside Delhi’s Azadpur metro station, killing a 15-year-old boy and a 45-year-old man. Initial reports suggest a tyre burst.
A 15-year-old boy and a Delhi government employee were crushed to death and three others injured when a low-floor Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) bus that lost control, rammed two e-rickshaws and an auto. The incident was reported from northwest Delhi’s Azadpur on Wednesday afternoon.
According to the police, the tyre of the bus that was speeding burst, and the driver could not control it. After the accident, driver Ranveer Singh, who had been working with DTC for the past five years, abandoned the vehicle and fled the spot.
He was later arrested. “We have registered a case of rash and negligent driving causing death against Singh and he has been arrested. Soon after the accident, our teams gathered details about the driver from DTC and raids were conducted to arrest him,” DCP northwest Milind Dumbre said.
“His medical examination was also conducted and it does not appear that he was driving under the influence of alcohol. Mechanical experts will examine the bus and the spot and will then decide what led to the accident. Prima facie it appears that the tyre of the bus burst and the driver lost control on the vehicle,” Dumbre said.
Among the dead was a e-rickshaw passenger, Class 10 student Sparsh, and passerby Devender, who worked with the Delhi government on contract. While Sparsh died on the spot, Devender succumbed to his injuries later in the day at a hospital. The other three have been admitted to the hospital and are out of danger.
“The initial probe revealed that the bus suddenly swerved towards its left and first hit an e-rickshaw that was turning on the wrong side. It then hit an auto and then another e-rickshaw to its right. While Sparsh was sitting on the rear seat of the e-rickshaw, Devender was crossing the road when the accident occurred,” a senior police officer said.
Speaking to HT, Shah Rukh, the e-rickshaw driver said, “I saw the bus coming closer when I was taking money from a passenger. I thought the driver will apply the brake but I soon realised that the bus has gone out of control. I shouted and asked the passengers to get down but the child who was sitting on the back did not react. He was crushed under the front wheels of the bus. I jumped out and suffered injuries on my foot.”
Locals immediately rushed to the accident spot and rescued those trapped in the mangled remains of the vehicles. “We were going to board the Metro when we saw this bus first hit an e-rickshaw and then an auto. People started screaming but the bus did not stop. We do not know if the driver was inside or the bus was running by itself. It ran over a child and then crushed another man. We rushed to help and one of the men even made a PCR call,” a local said.
With anger brewing among locals and commuters at the accident spot, a police team was deployed there to prevent any breakdown of the law and order situation. “The situation was brought under control after they were assured that the police team is working to arrest the driver. The crushed vehicles were later removed from the spot. Investigation is on,” a senior police officer said.
In September 2015, another DTC bus had gone out of control in central Delhi’s Kotwali area after its driver suffered a heart attack while at the wheel. The bus ran over pedestrians and motorists, killing two men and injuring at least six persons. The driver died on board the bus, which then ran without anyone steering it for several metres. It hit at least 10 vehicles before finally coming to a halt.