Recovery agents of a finance company in Agra city of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday illegally seized a privately-operated bus over non-payment of a loan taken by the owner of the vehicle forcing the driver and conductor to get down the bus and driving off with 34 passengers in it, various news outlets reported.
The Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Awanish Awasthi said the bus driver, staff and passengers are safe."Regarding the bus incident in Agra, the finance company had illegally seized the bus. The driver, staff and passengers are safe. The bus owner died yesterday (Tuesday) and his son is conducting the last rites," he said in a statement.
However, the state government did not mention the whereabouts of the bus.
The registration number of the sleeper bus is UP75M 3516 (Etawah in UP) but it is owned by a private operator in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, according to the police. Kumar said the episode started around 10:30 PM on Tuesday when the bus was near Raibha toll plaza at Dakshin bypass and eight-nine young men in two SUVs chased it.
"The men in SUVs then chased the bus and overtook it at Malpura area. They got into the bus and forcibly brought down the driver and the conductor. They also told the passengers to not scream and assured them that no harm will be done to them," Senior Superintendent of Police, Agra, Babloo Kumar said.
Three people who got off the bus informed the police that representatives of the finance company had boarded the vehicle and sped away on the Delhi-Kanpur highway, Kumar said.
Police personnel, including the district police chief, reached the spot this morning and a search operation was launched to track the bus, he said.
