Shajapur, May 16 (PTI) A four-year-old boy died after a private bus caught fire, possibly due to a short circuit, on the Agra-Mumbai National Highway in Madhya Pradesh’s Shajapur district, police said on Saturday.
The incident occurred shortly after midnight on Friday when the Indore-Gwalior intercity AC bus was stationed near Hotel Jain Path between Maksi and Shajapur, they said.
Some passengers had got down for refreshments, while others remained seated inside, Tarana police station house officer RNS Bhadauria told PTI.
He said the bus suddenly caught fire, triggering panic among passengers. People present at the spot, about 20 km from the district headquarters, broke a few windowpanes and glass panels to rescue passengers from the bus, while the driver and cleaner fled the scene, police said.
After the fire, which was likely triggered by a short circuit, was brought under control, four-year-old Anay Jain remained untraceable for several hours, officials said.
They said a JCB machine was used to break the gate and windows, and a welder was called to cut open the rear portion of the vehicle to facilitate the search.
Police said the child’s skeletal remains were recovered from beneath a seat after a nearly two-hour search.
The boy’s father Abhishek Jain said he, his wife and their two sons had boarded the bus from Indore for Shivpuri around 10 pm. He alleged that passengers had informed the driver about the smell of burning wires inside the bus, but the complaint was ignored.
Bhadauria said a case had been registered at Tarana police station and a probe is underway. PTI COR LAL NR
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.