Blueline claims another victim

A Blueline bus knocked down a man in northwest Delhi on Wednesday, making him the third victim of the capital's privately operated buses this year.

A Blueline bus knocked down a man in northwest Delhi on Wednesday, making him the third victim of the capital's privately operated buses this year.

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The bus, plying on route no. 982 between Sultanpuri and Seemapuri, crushed 21-year-old Rajender in Azadpur.

Rajender, a daily wager who lived in nearby Shalimar Bagh, was taken to a hospital where the doctors declared him dead.

Police said after hitting Rajender, the driver sped off with his bus.

"We have registered a case of rash and negligent driving against the driver and a search is on to arrest him," said a police official.

The 4,000-odd Blueline bus fleet, a crucial part of Delhi's public transport system, has earned public ire for the recklessness of its drivers and owners but officials say they are helpless to check the menace.

In 2007, Blueline buses had claimed 120 lives. They claimed the first victim of 2008 Saturday when a man was crushed to death in east Delhi.