Truck brakes didn’t fail: Police

In his statement to the police,Phadtare claimed that the brakes of his vehicle had failed. The police,however,rubbished this as an inspection of the truck by RTO officials revealed that the vehicle was fit for driving.

“There was nothing wrong with the vehicle. RTO officials inspected it and said Phadtare’s claims are untrue,but we are yet to receive the report. We should get a copy within the next two days. Contrary to what Phadtare had said,the brakes of the truck were working,” said Superintendent of Police (Raigad) R D Shinde.

The police have until now recorded the statements of 13 witnesses. Shinde said the police would wait for a few days before recording the statements of others.

“Most people have lost their loved ones and are in a state of shock. There are rituals to be followed and we will have to wait for recording the statements of others. Nearly 30 statements will be recorded in the case. Of those whose statements have been recorded,most were injured,” said Shinde.

Shinde said initial investigations revealed that the accident may have been caused because of the driver’s fatigue.

“There is no motive in this case. This is an accident and we have reason to believe that fatigue is a cause. Phadtare told us that he was driving throughout the night on Saturday and reached Mumbai around 11 am on Sunday. He also said he left the same night around 10 pm. We are verifying these facts,” he said.

Phadtare was on his way from Ulhasnagar in Mumbai to Kolhapur when he rammed his truck into the bus parked on the serviceway. The bus was part of a convoy of two buses ferrying those returning to Pune after the wedding of Yerawada resident Eknath Bahule and Manisha Gaikwad of Ghatkopar.

One of the buses suffered a flat tyre nearly 30 km away from Panvel. Most of the passengers got off and sat between both buses,while some sat in front of the bus that had broken down. As the mechanic was changing the tyre,a truck allegedly driven by Phadtare rammed into the second bus,which moved forward and crushed people sitting in between the buses before ramming into the broken down bus. The injured were rushed to hospitals in Panvel and Pune.