Mumbai: Santosh Sawant, the BEST driver arrested in connection with the Bhandup bus accident that claimed four lives and left nine others injured, had a questionable service record, according to reports quoting sources within the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking. However, officials clarified that he had no history of serious or fatal accidents prior to the incident.
A BEST official said Sawant had earlier been involved in a minor collision for which he was censured. “He has been censured, cautioned and suspended once in the past. However, there has not been any incident due to which his grade was reduced. In the present case, his suspension is pending inquiry,” the official said, as quoted by Hindustan Times.
Details On Sawant's Track Record
According to the report, Sawant was also involved in two previous incidents categorised as 'not blameworthy.' In such cases, the bus was involved in a minor accident, but the driver was not held responsible.
The fatal accident occurred on Route 606, where BEST had discontinued operations of its own midi buses from November 13. From November 14, services on the route were being operated by Olectra GreenTech, a wet-lease operator. Sawant, though a BEST employee, was driving one of the wet-lease buses at the time of the accident.
According to the HT report citing internal records, the 52-year-old joined BEST in January 2011 and had undergone training to operate electric buses. Following the Kurla bus accident on December 9, 2024, BEST had further strengthened its driver training modules at the Dindoshi Training Centre.
Between January this year and now, BEST conducted refresher training for 4,529 drivers. Of these, 2,121 were BEST staffers and 2,408 were drivers employed by wet-lease operators. Among the wet-lease drivers, 580 underwent refresher training specifically for electric buses, while 818 received induction training on e-buses.
In addition, 1,052 new drivers were inducted into the system and trained during this period. BEST officials also stated that 11 staff drivers were reinstated after completing the required training.
Regarding the Bhandup accident, officials stated that the bus was found to be in good physical and technical condition. It was driven to the police station after the incident and was not towed. Prima facie, BEST authorities believe the crash was caused by human error on the part of the driver, though a detailed inquiry is underway.The Regional Transport Office (RTO) is also conducting a separate investigation and will submit its report independently.
