Bengaluru: Private bus staff throw acid at RTO men, passengers injured

BENGALURU: Five passengers of a private carrier bus SRS Travels had a narrow escape and sustained minor burn injuries on their faces after the private bus staff allegedly threw bottles of sulphuric acid from the moving bus trying to escape an ongoing inspection by RTO officials.

The Upparpet police have registered a case against the private bus travel agency and its employees under Sections 285, 337, 378 r/w 2 of the IPC. The incident took place around 8.30 pm on Tuesday near Anand Rao Circle. The private bus belonging to SRS Travels was heading towards Jamkhandi from the city, the police said.

The injured have been identified as Palaniyappan, 20, Nishant, 20, Manju, 19, Sanju Patil, 20 and Akshay Guna, 24, all from Tamil Nadu. Passengers sustained burns on their faces while they were watching the employees throwing cans of sulphuric acid from the bus rooftop, they said.

There were 19 cans of sulphuric acid that had been illegally being purchased by a Jamkhandi merchant for soil testing. Though the chemical is supposed to be transported in a goods vehicle, the private operator had loaded it on top of the public carriage. On seeing the inspection being carried out by RTO officials, the private bus staff got scared and started throwing the cans from the bus rooftop. One of the cans broke down and the acid spilled on the five passengers who were sitting on the window seats, an investigation official said.

The alert RTO officials immediately arrested the bus staff and rushed injured passengers to Minto Hospital. They were discharged on Wednesday morning.

“A case has been registered against the private bus company under several sections of IPC and under Motor Vehicles Act. The dangerous chemical should not be carried in a public carriage. We have booked case against the employees and the private bus company. The investigation is under way,” an official said.