Pune:
It was a Wednesday full of shock and horror for Pune residents. A bus driver hurtled through the heart of the city, unleashing mayhem and crushing down people indiscriminately in his path. The incident, which lasted for 20 minutes, claimed nine people's lives and was brought to a halt by a college student.
At 8.15 on Wednesday morning, 30-year-old Santosh Mane, a driver with the state transport corporation for 11 years, drove away from the Swargate bus depot with an empty bus. Mane steered the bus as if on a rampage, lurching through Pune's main streets, packed with morning commuters.
As families of the victims come to terms with the mindless violence, stories of innocent lives lost surface. NDTV brings to you one such story of Pooja Patil, a 19-year-old girl who was killed in the incident.
Pooja's father Bhaurao Patil is trying to come to terms with his loss. When on Wednesday, he dropped his daughter, a second year dental student at a well-known Pune college, half way to her college, little did he expect that she would never return home alive.
Minutes after he dropped her off, the state transport bus with Mane behind the wheel ran over Pooja killing her on the spot. Soon after this, it hit Bhaurao's car, injuring him.
"She was going to become a doctor, there were a lot of hopes on her. The accident is the State Transport Department's fault," Kiran Dhumal, Pooja's neighbour says.
Pooja's friend Richa D'Souza describes her as being "an extrovert, bubbly girl".
"We used to share lunch. She was a very nice person, good at heart, good at work. We're going to miss her, really going to miss her," she adds.
Pooja Patil's story is one among the nine, whose tragic end was brought about by Mane's homicidal run.
Mane, who reportedly told the doctors he has been undergoing psychiatric treatment, has been arrested and charged with murder.