When BMTC driver Mahesh and conductor Devaraje Gowda stepped out of their bus on Sunday morning to freshen up for the long day ahead, little did they expect the surprise that would be waiting for them when they returned 20 minutes later.
When they entered the bus after their ablutions, they were startled to see a nearly three-month-old baby left on one of the seats by a person who had the duo’s brief absence and the cover of darkness to abandon the toddler. The baby was wrapped in a colourful woollen wrap and was giggling when the two found her, sources said.
The BMTC bus, on route number 347, and running between Kudlu Gate and Kempegowda Bus Station, had been parked on platform number 20 overnight.
“When they came back around 5.20 a.m., Mahesh switched on the lights in the bus and discovered the child, who had been abandoned in the seat behind the driver. The conductor and the driver immediately informed us and went to the police station. The police came back with us and inspected the spot,” a senior BMTC official said.
Meanwhile, the police have left the baby in the custody of Bosco Mane Shishumandira. She is said to be healthy. “The police have to issue a notification stating that they have found the baby in case the parents want to come and claim her. If this does not happen, the baby can then be put up for adoption,” an official with Bosco Mane said.
The bus, on route number 347, had been parked at Kempegowda Bus Station overnight
