Blueline mows down elderly man in west Delhi

A Blueline bus killed an elderly man in west Delhi on Friday, making him the fourth victim of the capital's privately operated buses this year.

A Blueline bus killed an elderly man in west Delhi on Friday, making him the fourth victim of the capital's privately operated buses this year.

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The bus, plying on route 816 between Uttam Nagar and Malkaganj, killed 65-year-old Satya Singh at west Delhi's Moti Nagar crossing while he was on a cycle rickshaw, going with his daughter-in-law to visit a doctor.

Police said the bus rammed into the rickshaw from behind. Singh fell and was run over by the rear wheel of the bus.

Singh was admitted to a nearby hospital, where he succumbed to his head injuries. His daughter-in-law suffered minor injuries.

The rickshaw puller and the driver of the killer bus both escaped from the scene.

"We have registered a case of rash and negligent driving against the driver and a search is on to arrest him. The owner of the bus has been called for questioning," 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 last Saturday when a man was crushed to death in east Delhi.