In a freak accident, a toddler was crushed under the wheels of a school bus at Habsiguda in Hyderabad on Thursday, January 4. The girl, 19-month-old Jewalanna Midhun, died on the spot as the bus driver, identified as Mohammad Imtiyaz, 41, drove the bus over her without noticing that she had walked in front of the vehicle, as stated in a report by The New Indian Express.
According to police, Jewalanna had accompanied her father, Midhun, to the pickup point where the school bus used to drop her brother off daily. On Thursday, January 4, Midhun informed the bus driver not to pick up his son for school from next week as they were planning to return to their hometown in Kerala next week for the holidays.
However, while her father was speaking to the bus driver, Jewalanna walked in front of the bus and when the vehicle started moving, she came under its wheels. Midhun rushed her to a private hospital nearby but the doctors declared that she was brought dead. Osmania police registered a case against the driver Imtiyaz and helper Rani. The body was sent for autopsy.
Meanwhile, on becoming aware of the incident, the Students' Federation of India (SFI) organised a protest in front of Johnson Grammar School, Habsiguda demanding justice and stricter safety measures.
It is said that the driver, who has been driving for the past 14 years, has been arrested and after the postmortem examination, the family left for Kerala with the body to perform last rites.
In a statement shared with EdexLive, SFI said that the school management acted, "negligently and illegally arrested the SFI leaders with the police and took them to the Osmania University Police Station". Stating the protest will continue till the de-recognition of justice is served to the family, they listed out a list of demands. Among which few are:
- Rupees five crore compensation to the deceased's family
- Free education to one member of the family affected
- De-accreditation of the school to ensure all school buses are functional
