The owner of the truck which fell into a deep gorge in Arunachal Pradesh killing 20 of its 21 occupants on December 8 has been arrested from Bihar on Wednesday.
“The accused was living in Tinsukia (Assam), but fled soon after the accident became public. A three-member team of Tinsukia police reached Bihar on Tuesday and arrested the accused from Chapra. He will be brought to Tinsukia on transit remand after completion of necessary formalities,” a police official said.
Police said the owner, Bhushan Kumar Yadav, had fled from the Upper Assam town to his native place in Bihar soon after reports of the mishap in Anjaw district of Arunachal Pradesh came to light on December 10.
Yadav has been arrested for criminal negligence involving violation of motor vehicles rules. “Transportation of passengers in goods transport vehicles is illegal,” the official said.
The number of arrests in the case is at three now. The arrest of Yadav, 36, will put the spotlight on the checkpoints between Tinsukia and Anjaw.
“It is surprising that nobody could detect the transportation of humans till the mishap happened. The truck passed through four districts – Tinsukia, Namsai, Lohit and Anjaw!” a person familiar with the Tinsukia-Anjaw route said.
Two persons — Md Sirajul Ahmed, 36, and Sairuddin Ali, 27 — were arrested on December 11 and 13 respectively on charges of human trafficking and criminal negligence leading to death of the 20 construction workers. One of the occupants, Budheswar Deep, survived and reported the incident at a BRO camp after walking through a rough and steep terrain for two days.
They were booked under BNS sections dealing with human trafficking, culpable homicide not amounting to murder, injury caused by rash or negligent act and criminal conspiracy.
The 20 bodies were lifted from the 200-m gorge after a four-day gruelling and risky search operation involving over 150 personnel from state and central agencies.
Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday visited Gelapukhuri in Tinsukia district to meet the bereaved families of the 20 persons killed in the mishap.
Sarma on Wednesday handed over ex gratia of ₹5 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased labourers.
“Standing with families during trying times! In Tinsukia, HCM Dr. @himantabiswa met the families of those who lost their lives in the tragic road accident in Arunachal Pradesh and conveyed heartfelt condolences,” the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said in a post on X.
“On behalf of Govt of Assam, HCM handed over ₹5 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased and ₹1 lakh from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for the treatment of the injured,” CMO said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also announced an ex gratia of ₹2 lakh each for the next of kin of those who died from the PM National Relief Fund.
Additional reporting by PTI
