Hyderabad: Teams of the Crime Investigation Department (CID) have intensified their search for Feroze Basha, prime accused in the October 2013 Volvo bus mishap case at Mahbubnagar, in which 45 persons were charred to death and six injured.
Basha, who drove the bus, has not been attending court for the past two years. “Two teams have travelled to Bengaluru in the past couple of months to track him down. He couldn’t be found at the address he had furnished with the police or at the courts to obtain bail. We have also questioned his employers, who also have no clue,” said a senior official from the CID.
The bus, owned by Jabbar Travels, caught fire after hitting a culvert on National Highway 44 near Palem in Mahbubnagar. Forty-five passengers, including 19 software engineers were charred to death in the accident reported on October 30, 2013.
Mahbubnagar police had arrested Basha at the time of the incident. According to the official, the case was later transferred to the CID, and a charge sheet was filed at the Mahbubnagar district court in 2014. The other accused in the case are J C Uma Reddy, wife of politician J C Prabhakar Reddy, Shakeel Jabbar - owner of Jabbar Travels and other employees.
The charge sheet filed by the CID alleged that the bus owner had altered the interiors of the bus and added five more seats. The remaining accused including, J C Uma Reddy, are attending the court, said CID sleuths.
Legal experts point out that the case would be weakened with the prime accused not attending the trial. “The driver is the prime accused in the case and as per law he will get maximum punishment if convicted. Moreover, the allegations against the other accused primarily depend on his statement, and if the person is absconding the case is weak,” said Khaja Aejazuddin, a High Court lawyer.
