The Express bus that had claimed the life of 17 persons in a bizarre mishap near Kaup a few months ago, has claimed another life at Kumbhashi in Kundapur on Sunday.

The bus was on its way to Udupi from Kundapur when it collided against an autorickshaw coming in the opposite direction killing the auto driver on the spot and severely injuring another person in the auto. The deceased has been identified as Ganesh Mestha (32) of Udupi and the injured is Srikanth of Karwar.

Reckless driving by the bus driver is said to be the reason for the mishap.

A large number of people gathered at the spot and staged protest against the speeding buses on the route.