4 of family killed as bus collides with motorbike in Indore

Indore, Sep 18 (PTI) A couple and their two minor children were killed after a speeding bus belonging to a private travel firm collided with their motorcycle in Madhya Pradesh's Indore district, police said on Thursday.

The Opposition Congress alleged that police made a weak case against the bus driver after the incident on Wednesday under pressure from the BJP, as the bus belonged to a firm run by the family of a ruling party legislator.

Dismissing the charge, the BJP said the state government always acts impartially, and claimed the Congress was trying to politicise the incident.

The accident occurred late Wednesday night on the Indore-Ujjain road when the bus of a private firm hit the motorcycle, killing Mahendra Solanki (35), his wife Jayshree Solanki (33) and their sons Jigar (5) and Tejas (14), Sanwer police station in-charge G S Mahobia said.

The unidentified bus driver fled the scene after the accident, the official said, adding a case has been registered against him under sections 281 (rash or negligent driving on a public way), 125(A) (act endangering human life) and 106(1) (causing death by negligence) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Another police official confirmed the bus belongs to a private travel firm run by the family of local BJP MLA Rakesh 'Golu' Shukla.

According to eyewitnesses, the bus, operated under the name Baneshwari Travels, had 'Golu' written on its rear side, and the collision was so severe that its front portion was badly damaged.

Madhya Pradesh Congress spokesperson Santosh Singh Gautam alleged that police invoked weaker legal provisions against the bus driver under pressure from the ruling BJP.

"The driver should be booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder," he said.

"Serious accidents have been caused by high-speed buses of this travel firm earlier also on the Indore-Ujjain road," he alleged.

Rejecting the allegation, MP BJP spokesperson Alok Dubey said, "The state government always acts impartially. The Congress is making an ugly attempt to politicise this unfortunate road accident." PTI HWP LAL GK