Wet-lease BEST bus rams six vehicles in Andheri, three hurt

A wet-lease BEST bus crashed into four autorickshaws, a car and a scooter near Gokhale Bridge in Andheri West on Monday afternoon, injuring three people. The bus, operated from the Oshiwara depot on route A-221/36, moved forward after the driver released the handbrake, according to the BEST accident report. The injured were autorickshaw driver Yunus Shaikh, 55, pedestrian Manojkumar Bajdev, 30, and scooter rider Anis Nisar Dhari, 20. They were taken to Cooper Hospital. X-rays and sonography of Shaikh and Bajdev were normal, and both were discharged. Dhari declined further treatment and went to the D.N. Nagar police station to lodge a complaint.

The incident has renewed concerns over the safety of contractor-operated buses, following a series of accidents involving wet-lease buses in Mumbai. The bus hit four autorickshaws, one Ertiga and one Activa that were stationary at the signal. Police have moved the bus to the depot after completing formalities.