Subhro Maitra | Aug 27, 2011, 02.15AM IST
MALDA: India's lifeline is slowly turning out to be a nightmare for its citizens. A series of accidents, attacks on passengers by catering staff, cases of molestation - horrific tales keep pouring in from trains running across the country. It was the turn of a lady doctor to have a bitter experience on Thursday night with a co-passenger allegedly molesting her on theMalda-bound Gour Express.
The man, who claimed to be a government servant, was later handed over to the Malda GRP. "On the basis of a complaint lodged by a doctor, we arrested Nishikanta Mahato, who is from Chitra village in Purulia. He has been slapped with a case under Sec 354 IPC. He was produced in court today," Prabir Kr Das, the inspector in charge of the Malda GRP, said on Friday.
The victim, who works at a health centre in Malda, was travelling along with her husband, who is also a doctor. They had berths 13 and 14 in the reserved S-2 compartment. The victim was occupying the upper berth while her husband was in the middle berth below. Around 3 am, the woman woke up after feeling a touch on her feet. Recalling the recent cases of molestation, she became alert at once.
Nothing happened for some time. Then came a light touch on her neck. Without waiting any further, the victim raised an alarm and switched on the light. The culprit turned out to be Mahato, who was occupying berth no 19, the upper berth right opposite. But when the woman's husband and other passengers confronted him, Mahato allegedly claimed that it was an accident.
The man, aged around 40, said he worked as a temporary employee of Gangarampore block in South Dinajpur for the last five years and claimed that he had been to Kolkata for finalizing the permanent status of his employment. He claimed innocence and claimed his hand had "accidentally" touched the woman's body on the running train.
None of the other passengers, however, were ready to buy his story. When the train reached Malda at 6.20 am, the doctor lodged a complaint with the GRP at the station and Mahato was handed over to them.
Sanjoy Haoladar, the BDO of Gangarampore block, however, denied the presence of any such employee in his office. It is possible that Mahato faked his identity with an intention to influence the passengers and the police.
Incidents of molestation and assault are becoming alarmingly regular on trains. A police inspector from Balasore was arrested on July 2 for allegedly molesting a nine-year-old girl on a train near Bhubaneswar, while an Army havildar was arrested at Howrah station on July 15 on charges of molesting a co-passenger. On July 6 and 25, passengers complained of being attacked by catering staff on the Duronto and Gitanjali expresses respectively.
The man, who claimed to be a government servant, was later handed over to the Malda GRP. "On the basis of a complaint lodged by a doctor, we arrested Nishikanta Mahato, who is from Chitra village in Purulia. He has been slapped with a case under Sec 354 IPC. He was produced in court today," Prabir Kr Das, the inspector in charge of the Malda GRP, said on Friday.
The victim, who works at a health centre in Malda, was travelling along with her husband, who is also a doctor. They had berths 13 and 14 in the reserved S-2 compartment. The victim was occupying the upper berth while her husband was in the middle berth below. Around 3 am, the woman woke up after feeling a touch on her feet. Recalling the recent cases of molestation, she became alert at once.
Nothing happened for some time. Then came a light touch on her neck. Without waiting any further, the victim raised an alarm and switched on the light. The culprit turned out to be Mahato, who was occupying berth no 19, the upper berth right opposite. But when the woman's husband and other passengers confronted him, Mahato allegedly claimed that it was an accident.
The man, aged around 40, said he worked as a temporary employee of Gangarampore block in South Dinajpur for the last five years and claimed that he had been to Kolkata for finalizing the permanent status of his employment. He claimed innocence and claimed his hand had "accidentally" touched the woman's body on the running train.
None of the other passengers, however, were ready to buy his story. When the train reached Malda at 6.20 am, the doctor lodged a complaint with the GRP at the station and Mahato was handed over to them.
Sanjoy Haoladar, the BDO of Gangarampore block, however, denied the presence of any such employee in his office. It is possible that Mahato faked his identity with an intention to influence the passengers and the police.
Incidents of molestation and assault are becoming alarmingly regular on trains. A police inspector from Balasore was arrested on July 2 for allegedly molesting a nine-year-old girl on a train near Bhubaneswar, while an Army havildar was arrested at Howrah station on July 15 on charges of molesting a co-passenger. On July 6 and 25, passengers complained of being attacked by catering staff on the Duronto and Gitanjali expresses respectively.
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