Overview
- The Kurnool Range DIG said owner Vemuri Vinod Kumar was arrested on November 7 and released on bail after being produced in a local court.
- An FIR names bus driver Miriyala Lakshmaiah as Accused 1 and the owner as Accused 2 under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Motor Vehicles Act provisions.
- Investigators allege the operator converted a seating bus into a sleeper coach in violation of rules, obstructing the emergency exit and other safety measures.
- Police reconstruction says the Hyderabad–Bengaluru bus ran over a motorcycle lying on NH44, dragged it about 200 meters, and leaking fuel ignited a blaze that killed 19 passengers.
- The bike rider died at the scene while the pillion was later traced through CCTV and arrested, and 27 of the 46 people on board, including both drivers, escaped by breaking windows.