HYDERABAD, 26 September — As many as 14 passengers were charred to death and 17 others seriously injured when a state-owned transport bus caught fire under suspicious circumstances in the Mahbubnagar district in Andhra Pradesh early yesterday.
The luxury coach with 36 people on board was on its way from Hyderabad to Rayachoti in Cuddapah district, some 400 km away, when it caught fire near a village 35 km from Kurnool town soon after midnight.
Eight passengers died on the spot while six others succumbed to their injuries in hospital. Condition of some others remained critical. Seven of the dead bodies were charred beyond recognition.
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, who visited the scene, has ordered a probe into the tragedy. Some survivors alleged that a passenger carrying inflammable material had set the bus on fire.
Police ruled out any connection to the temple attack in Gandhinagar Tuesday and said it could be the handiwork of Maoist guerrillas or criminals wanting to rob the passengers. — Syed Amin Jafri
