Kollam : A youth was arrested for stealthily driving away a KSRTC bus from Punalur depot after highway police intercepted the vehicle a short distance away after noticing the headlights turned off.
Arrested in the incident is 23-year-old Bineesh Kumar, residing in Ottakal Arya Bhavan in Urukunnu and is a truck driver by trade. The bus was parked for the night on the Pathanapuram road adjacent to the depot when Bineesh sneaked into the bus and rode it away close to 11:30 Thursday night.
When the bus reached TB junction, a km away from the bus depot, the highway cop on duty grew suspicious on seeing KSRTC bus heading without lights turned on. He signalled to stop the bus, which Bineesh did but started to run and was eventually caught. He was later handed over to Punalur police.
Bineesh was drunk at the time of his capture. He claims he took the bus for innocuous purpose of reaching home. The bus in question plies the Punalur-Kokkad route terminating at Thiruvananthapuram Medical College.
