Two pre-university students on their way to college died and another was wounded when a speeding BMTC bus crashed into a footpath on the Mysuru Road toll gate near Gopalan Mall in western Bengaluru on Tuesday, police said.
Chandrakant, Rajashekar M, both 17 and first-year students, and their senior Yadu Kumar, 18, had got off a bus and were walking on the footpath when a BMTC bus crashed into the pavement around 8.15 pm. The bus, plying from Dodda Basti to KR Market, had a brake failure and hit the footpath before ploughing into a compounding wall and screeching to a halt. It knocked down Chandrakant and Kumar but Rajashekar had a narrow escape. The boys were studying at the BBMP PU College in KB Nagar, Mysuru Road.
The bus driver, identified as Lokesh, was also injured after falling on the steering was also admitted to the hospital.
The boys were rushed to a hospital where doctors declared Chandrakant and Kumar brought dead. Their bodies were later moved to the Victoria Hospital. Rajashekar is also being treated at the hospital.
The accident caused a traffic jam for almost two hours on the busy Mysuru Road until the jurisdictional Bytarayanapura traffic police towed the bus away.
Back at the Victoria Hospital, a large number of students and relatives of the boys congregated and raised slogans against BMTC drivers for rash and negligent driving. They slammed the BMTC for poor maintenance of the buses.
Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun and BBMP officials visited the hospital and announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh for the families of the deceased.
Dizziness at the wheel
A senior police officer said the bus driver had complained of dizziness at the wheel. Police have booked him for rash and negligent driving amounting to murder but are yet to question him as he in the hospital.
A team of BMTC officials visited the spot and inspected the bus. Police are waiting for their report.