Duo damages BEST bus, injures passengers; held

Following the incident, the Dahisar police arrested two men including the cab driver Sameer Surve (45) and his passenger, a small-time television actor Sanjeev Singh (45).

Mumbai: The police have arrested two of the three men who allegedly damaged a BEST bus and injured over a dozen passengers inside it.

When the assault went out of hand, the passengers tried to reason with the accused but they did not pay any heed. The passengers then intervened and caught the accused who were trying to flee seeing policemen approach the spot. (Image for representation)

According to the eyewitnesses, the passengers were caught by surprise when three men travelling in the taxi stopped their vehicle in front of the bus before they charged inside and allegedly assaulted the BEST bus driver Ramesh Pawar, 55, and began pelting stones at the bus.

Officers said that the bus driver and a woman passenger suffered injuries. Following the incident, the Dahisar police arrested two men including the cab driver Sameer Surve (45) and his passenger, a small-time television actor Sanjeev Singh (45). They claimed that their cab’s front portion was damaged due to Pawar’s negligence.

Pawar told the police that the cab driver was speeding and crashed into the bus. “They tore my shirt and thrashed till my head started bleeding. I was bitten by one of the accused when I tried to retaliate,” said Pawar.

When the assault went out of hand, the passengers tried to reason with the accused but they did not pay any heed. The passengers then intervened and caught the accused who were trying to flee seeing policemen approach the spot.

Smita Patil, the deputy commissioner of police, Zone 12, said that the two accused were arrested from the spot.

“We are searching for the third accused involved in the case,” she added.

The accused has been booked under sections 323 (hurt), 324 (causing hurt with dangerous weapon or means), 332 (causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 353 (Assault or use of criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of his duty), and 427 (mischief) of the Indian Penal Code.

The incident happened around 9:35 pm on Monday when the bus (route number 705) left from Dindoshi depot to Kashigaon on Mira Road and got involved in a road rage case with an aggregator taxi.