Deadly Jhalakathi crash: Driver wasn't licensed to operate bus
The driver of the bus that veered off the road and fell into a waterbody in Jhalakathi yesterday, leaving 17 people dead and 35 injured, did not have a valid licence to operate the heavy vehicle.
Mohan Khan possessed a licence to operate light vehicles (motorcycles and private cars) and so was not supposed to be behind the wheels of the bus, a probe committee member said.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Mohan, who is on the run, got the licence from Barishal circle of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) in 2020, the member told The Daily Star today.
Replying to a question, the member said police got the licence-related documents from other sources. He could not give details about it.
The Barishal-bound bus of Bashar Smriti Paribahan, which was carrying over 60 passengers against its capacity of 52, left Pirojpur's Bhandaria around 9:00am and fell into the roadside pond on the Barishal-Khulna highway around 10:00am.
Survivors and officials blamed the driver's carelessness for the accident. The bus's fitness and road permit documents were, however, updated.
A five-member probe body, headed by the additional district magistrate of Jhalakathi Mamun Shiblee, was formed to investigate the accident.
"We are continuing our investigation. A [probe body] member from Accident Research Institute of Buet, will reach the spot tomorrow," he said.
Contacted, probe body chief Mamun Shiblee declined to make any comment given that the investigation is ongoing.