Two people were injured after a mentally unstable man got behind the wheel of a stationary bus and drove it straight into a shelter for waiting passengers at a bus depot in Amravati on Friday. After trying in vain to make sense of the accused’s ramblings, the police ultimately admitted him to a hospital on Saturday evening.
According to the Paratwada police, the incident occurred at the Paratwada bus depot on Friday afternoon. A state transport bus that had come from Chikhaldhara was parked next to the bus depot. The bus driver had gone inside the depot to record his entry and exit time, before leaving for a return journey to Chikhaldhara, but had left the keys in the ignition. Unknown to him, a man climbed into his seat and started the bus.
“The bus, which was empty, crashed into a shelter where some passengers were waiting for another bus. While most of them managed to leap out of the shelter, two of them were hit by the bus, sustaining serious injuries. The impact of the collision also injured the accused,” said an officer with the Paratwada police.
The injured were rushed to a government hospital in Paratwada, while the accused was taken into custody by the police. He was first taken to the hospital where he was treated for his injuries and also subjected to medical tests to check for inebriation. The man was rambling incoherently the whole time and the police has not even been able to identify him yet.
“Every time we asked his name, the accused replies, “Mi aamdar Deshmukh aahe (I am MLA Deshmukh)”. On Saturday evening, we admitted him to the government hospital in Amravati, where psychiatrists will examine him. No one has come forward claiming to be his family yet,” the officer added.