Mumbai BEST bus crash: Who’s at fault - handbrake failure, risky U-turn or hawkers?

BEST bus accident

• BEST bus accident near Bhandup station leaves 4 dead, 9 injured
• Driver and civic neglect blamed; police probe mechanical and urban issues
• Maharashtra CM announces Rs 5 lakh aid for families of deceased victims

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A routine evening commute turned to tragedy outside Bhandup railway station on Monday night, leaving four people dead and nine injured after a Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) bus reversed into a queue of passengers.

As the injured fight for recovery and families mourn, a complex blame game has begun, with the driver pointing to a mechanical handover, eyewitnesses citing chronic civic neglect and authorities scrambling for answers.

The incident, occurring at approximately 10.05 pm, saw the air-conditioned electric bus, operating on a wet lease on the 606 Ring Road route, strike pedestrians standing near a bus stop. Graphic viral videos from the scene showed bystanders desperately pushing the vehicle to free those trapped beneath it. The deceased included three women and one man, as confirmed by police.

Eyewitnesses said that most buses struggle to make a U-turn outside the railway station due to roadside hawkers and heavy crowds.

Error, fault or a deadly environment?

Initial police reports, as noted by HT, stated the 52-year-old driver was attempting a U-turn to enter the adjacent bus depot when he allegedly hit the accelerator instead of the brake, ramming the bus into the queue. Deputy Commissioner of Police Hemraj Rajput confirmed the driver was taken into custody.

However, the arrested driver, identified as permanent BEST employee Santosh Sawant, provided a contradictory account to the Bhandup police, as per a report by The Indian Express. He claimed the accident was caused by the previous driver, who had left the hand brake in drive mode instead of neutral. Sawant stated that when he pulled the hand brake to start, the vehicle — already in gear — surged forward.

Police officials stated that Sawant, now in custody, did not initially appear to be under the influence of any intoxicant. They have sent the bus for technical inspection and plan to call the previous driver to record his statement, acknowledging the need to verify Sawant’s account against the preliminary report.

Eyewitnesses: A persistent problem of encroachment

While the police investigation examines the driver’s claims, local eyewitnesses and shopkeepers present a starkly different narrative, attributing the tragedy to systemic civic failures. They describe the lane outside Bhandup station as perennially overcrowded, with hawkers encroaching on footpaths and forcing pedestrians onto the road.

Saimini Mudaliyar, a local pharmacist, told PTI that buses ending their trips at Bhandup station consistently struggle to manoeuvre due to hawkers and heavy evening crowds. She placed the accident time between 9.35 pm and 9.45 pm. This sentiment was echoed by other witnesses who squarely blamed hawker encroachment for leaving pedestrians with no safe space to wait.

A police officer from Bhandup station reportedly corroborated the chronic chaos, noting the area is one of the suburb’s most crowded, with hawkers occupying much of the space and leaving little room for pedestrians.

A grim pattern and official response

The Bhandup crash marks the second devastating accident involving a BEST bus in consecutive Decembers, following the Kurla incident last year that killed nine. This pattern has heightened public anxiety over urban transport safety.

In response to the latest tragedy, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh to the families of each deceased victim. In a post on X, he termed the incident “extremely unfortunate” and offered prayers for the speedy recovery of the injured.

Local shopkeepers, like Bhagwandas who owns a nearby sweet shop, were among the first responders, calling ambulances, informing police, and offering water and shelter to the injured while contacting their families.

The investigation now hinges on several critical verifications: the technical inspection of the bus, the statement of the previous driver and the examination of the site’s longstanding infrastructural hazards. The preliminary driver’s account of a mechanical oversight contends with the entrenched public testimony of negligent urban planning and enforcement.