Kurnool (Andhra Pradesh), Oct 25 (IANS) The investigation into the ghastly bus fire tragedy that claimed 19 lives took a new turn on Saturday with the police taking custody of a youth who was riding pillion on the motorbike, which is believed to have triggered the blaze after being hit by the bus.

While B. Shiva Shankar (22), who was riding the motorcycle, died on the spot, his friend Erriswamy, riding pillion, escaped with minor injuries. He allegedly fled the scene after the bus caught fire.

Police officials were questioning Erriswamy about the sequence of events that led to the bus catching fire.

They were trying to ascertain if the motorcycle had already met with an accident before the bus hit the two-wheeler lying on the road, as claimed by the bus driver, or if the bus had hit the motorcycle from behind and run over it.

The investigators hope to get clarity on what exactly happened before the bus was engulfed by the flames.

The bus belonging to a private travel operator and carrying 44 passengers was on its way to Bengaluru from Hyderabad. The accident occurred near Chinnatekur village on the outskirts of Kurnool between 3-3.15 a.m.

While 19 passengers, including two children, were charred to death, 27 passengers, including both drivers, escaped by breaking glass windows.

Preliminary investigation suggests that as the motorcycle got stuck under the bus’s belly, the friction and fuel leakage from the bike ignited the massive fire.

As part of the investigation into the mishap, the police scanned the CCTV footage in the area on the National Highway-44 and spotted the bike at a petrol station minutes before the accident.

Shiva Shankar was seen riding the bike recklessly, and police suspect that he was under the influence of alcohol or some other substance. The police identified the youth riding pillion as Shiva Shankar’s friend Erriswamy.

The police picked up the youth from his house in Rampalli village in Tuggali mandal in the same district.

The duo had left Kurnool for Dhone in Nandyal district in the early hours of Friday for some work. After they met with the accident resulting in Shiva Shankar’s death, Erriswamy escaped from the spot.

The video footage shows the biker arriving at a petrol pump with a pillion at 2:22 a.m. According to the petrol pump manager, it was a Pulsar bike. The headlight was not working, and the rider was using only the left indicator.

The pump manager said the rider appeared drunk and was riding the bike like a stuntman. As there was no attendant at one of the Dispensing Units (DU), a man riding pillion walked away, apparently to find someone to refuel their vehicle. The biker too got off and went around the petrol pump.

The pump manager said only one out of three DUs was open at that time. When the two youths approached the employee at another DU, the latter asked them to bring their vehicle. According to the employee, the way Shiva Shankar was riding the vehicle, it looked as if it might skid. He brought the vehicle to the DU, which was open, and refuelled the vehicle.

The petrol pump manager said that since the motorcyclist paid cash, they have no record of how much petrol they filled.

Shiva Shankar’s body was found about 200 metres before the place where the bus caught fire. The bus apparently dragged the bike for 200 metres before it came to a halt.

Police have also collected the CCTV footage of the bus passing in front of the petrol pump. This footage is expected to help the investigators find a clue about the speed at which the bus was being driven.

Laxmaiah and Siva Narayana, both drivers of the bus, are already in police custody.

–IANS

ms/dan