Mumbai bus crash: Politicians demand probe and action against driver, union calls for scrapping wet lease |

The BEST’s wet lease system came under scrutiny. Some politicians and union leaders called for its scrapping. They advocated for BEST to purchase and maintain its own buses.

MUMBAI: It was a day when several politicians took a delegation to the BEST, met the injured at hospitals, and also spoke to media persons in connection with the bus crash. BEST Workers’ Union leader Shashank Rao petitioned the BEST GM, demanding that the wet lease system be scrapped in Mumbai.
Former BEST committee member Suhas Samant from Sena UBT demanded a detailed probe from the police. The drivers were made to work under pressure, and there is more than meets the eye, he said, adding that the contract firm should also be probed. He alleged that some of the wet lease firms have poor maintenance, and this has brought a bad name to BEST, which has one of the best maintenance staff for its own buses.
A delegation of BJP, led by several former corporators, including Prabhakar Shinde and Ravi Raja, met BEST general manager Anil Diggikar and demanded compensation for victims, action against culprits and any BEST officer responsible for the crash.
Congress MLA Amin Patel, Aslam Shaikh, and Jyoti Gaikwad visited the injured at Bhabha Hospital in the afternoon and demanded a detailed probe into the crash and that BEST should ensure such incidents do not recur. Rao said BEST should purchase its own buses and maintain a fleet of 3,337 buses. “We can run our buses, maintain them well, and also have experienced drivers in the undertaking,” he added.