Jaipur: In a heart-wrenching incident on Tuesday, a private sleeper bus transporting 45 laborers from Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, caught fire in Jaipur, Rajasthan, after colliding with a high-tension power line. The tragic accident resulted in the deaths of two laborers and left six others injured. Authorities have booked five people, including the bus owner, driver, the contractor responsible for the laborers, and two owners of the brick kiln where the laborers were headed, citing gross negligence.
The First Information Report (FIR) was filed at Manoharpura police station on Wednesday morning. Preliminary investigations indicate significant oversights from all parties involved, contributing to critical safety failures that led to the accident. Inspector Bhagwan Sahay of Manoharpura stated that further investigation is ongoing.
According to police reports, the bus, en route to a brick kiln in Manoharpura’s Toda, struck an 11,000 KV high-tension line around 10:30 AM on Tuesday. The bus’s roof was heavily loaded with luggage, two-wheelers, LPG cylinders, and other passenger belongings. This overload caused it to contact the high-tension line, leading to an electrical surge that ignited the fire. The subsequent explosion of cylinders and motorcycle engines exacerbated the blaze. Authorities have recovered three burnt LPG cylinders and two burnt motorcycles from the site.
Victims identified include Nassem (50) and his daughter Sahneem (20), who tragically lost their lives. Five other individuals sustained burn injuries: Sitara (40) with 45% burns, Chanda Begum (40) with 25% burns, Najma (40) with 15% burns, and Altaf (22) and Azhar (10) with 10% burns each. They are currently receiving treatment at Sawai Man Singh Hospital, and one person has already been discharged.
The individuals booked are bus owner Arif Mansuri, driver Matloob Hussain, labor contractor Shahrukh, and brick kiln owners Doluram and Kanaram. They face charges under Section 105 (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Authorities noted that the bus driver had overloaded the roof with flammable materials, violating safety guidelines. Furthermore, the bus owner was found to be operating the vehicle despite its permit having expired on April 21. The contractor and kiln owners are held responsible for the laborers’ safety, allegedly forcing them to travel in the overloaded bus despite their objections.
In a related development, the transport department has placed three Regional Transport Office (RTO) inspectors from Bharatpur and Dausa under awaiting posting order (APO) and issued notices to the RTO heads of both districts. An anonymous transport department official revealed that the bus had passed seven RTO check-posts – five in Uttar Pradesh and two in Rajasthan – without any intervention, despite its expired permit. Additionally, records show the bus had accrued over 40 challans for various traffic violations in the past four months, highlighting a systemic failure in enforcement.