In a bizarre and concerning incident, a North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) bus was allegedly driven using passengers’ mobile phone flashlights after its headlight stopped working midway through the journey in Karnataka’s Dharwad district.
The bus had departed from Hubballi at around 8 pm and was heading towards Attigere when the incident reportedly took place near the Sanshi bus stop in Kundgol taluk. The bus’s headlight allegedly malfunctioned, leaving the driver without proper visibility on the road.
Instead of stopping the bus, the driver reportedly continued the journey with the help of flashlights switched on by passengers on their mobile phones. The passengers used their phone lights to illuminate the road ahead as the bus travelled through Sanshi and Gudgeri towards Attigere.
The driver eventually managed to reach the destination using the mobile phone flashlights.
A video purportedly showing the incident has now gone viral on social media. The footage appears to show passengers using their mobile phone flashlights to help illuminate the road while the bus continues its journey.
The incident has raised concerns over passenger safety, particularly about why the bus was allegedly allowed to continue operating despite its headlight malfunctioning.
A similar incident was reported in Karnataka in July 2026, when a Kalyana Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (KKRTC) bus was allegedly driven without working headlights, leaving the conductor to use a mobile phone torch to assist the driver.
The incident reportedly took place on the last bus operating from Kalaburagi City to Chincholi, located nearly 90 kilometres away. A video of the incident later surfaced on social media and quickly went viral.
The footage appeared to show the bus travelling along a completely dark stretch of road without its headlights switched on, while the conductor held up a mobile phone torch to provide some visibility for the driver.
It remains unclear when exactly the bus’s headlights stopped functioning. However, the passengers were reportedly made to continue their journey despite the apparent safety risk.