The private bus involved in the Samruddhi Expressway accident in Maharashtra killing 25 passengers had been fined for violations including an expired fitness certificate, missing fire extinguisher and blocked emergency exit during February 2021-June 2023, as per data, the PTI reported.

The sleeper coach bus had rammed into a pole on the expressway in Buldhana district in Maharashtra while on its way to Pune on July 1, hit a road divider, and caught fire as it fell on its left side. While 25 passengers were charred to death, eight others, including the driver and his assistant, survived.