Shimla, September 09: In a scene that could easily be construed as a plot twist in a bizarre comedy, a car driver at the Murthal toll plaza decided that if he can’t have his way, neither can the bus passengers. In a bizarre incident on Friday night, the driver of a private car snatched the keys from an HRTC bus (HP-67-8084) travelling from Vrindavan to Hamirpur and fled – not just on the road but to Bathinda.
It all started at 8:45 pm when the bus stopped at a regular stop at the toll plaza. What followed was not normal at all. The car driver, upset at not getting a pass, approached the bus and in an act that shocked everyone, snatched the keys from the bus driver’s hands. After making his point, he immediately drove off with the bus – leaving the bus full of passengers there.
As the passengers watched in disbelief and the bus stood still at the plaza, the driver and conductor tried to contact HRTC officials. Soon, higher authorities in Delhi were informed, and a search for the runaway car began. Meanwhile, the passengers were shifted to other corporation buses, but the bus remained locked in its temporary parking spot.
By the time the police traced the car, the driver had reached Bathinda, nearly 200 km away. Responding to the situation, the Haryana Police ordered him to return with the keys of the bus – which he finally did, coming to the police station on Saturday afternoon to hand over the stolen keys.
As if the story was not strange enough, the driver was fined Rs 30,000 by the HRTC for his unplanned fun. Instead of registering a case, the HRTC chose to settle the matter on the spot by collecting the fine.
HRTC Hamirpur division divisional manager Rajkumar Pathak confirmed the details of the bizarre incident. “A car driver snatched the keys of our moving bus, left it at the toll plaza and took it with him to Bathinda. The matter was resolved after he paid a fine of Rs 30,000.”
While the passengers eventually reached their destination, the bizarre journey from Murthal to Bathinda with the keys of the bus lost has certainly become a story that will be remembered forever – leaving both passengers and HRTC officials scratching their heads over this unusual form of ‘bus hijacking’.
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