(Posted in Blog Forum as I am failed so many times to post it in news forum)
Man pushed to death
from woman special train
UTTARPARA: In
an act of
extreme...
more...
brutality, women
commuters on a
Burdwan-bound
'ladies special' local train from
Howrah allegedly threw a 40-
year-old man to his death near
Hind Motor station on Tuesday
evening. A woman constable of
Railway Protection Force (RPF),
on duty in the compartment, was
accused by some passengers of
aiding the women passengers.
Locals, led by Dilip Yadav,
chairman of the Trinamool
Congress-run Uttarpara-Kotrung
Municipality squatted on the
tracks at Hind Motor station after
the incident, demanding
compensation for the family of
the victim and punishment for
the accused. Thousands of
passengers were stranded at
Howrah Station as the blockade
continued well into the night.
Due to the ongoing Jagaddhatri
Puja festivities at Chandernagore,
there was a heavy rush of
passengers at Howrah on
Tuesday evening. This added to
the normal evening peak rush.
Dipu Sharma, a resident of Hind
Motor, took the risk of boarding
the 37201 Burdwan local meant
only for women.
According to some passengers,
an altercation started soon after
Sharma boarded the train.
However, he could not get off at
Howrah as the train had already
started. The altercation between
a group of women standing near
the gate, including the RPF
constable, and the man
continued as the train crossed
the Liluah, Belur, Bally and
Uttarpara stations.
"The man apologized and offered
to get off the train at Liluah but
the women had surrounded him.
They went on abusing him and
refused to let him get off at any
of the stations. Finally, when he
realized that Hind Motor was
approaching, Sharma made a
dash towards the door. There
was resistance from the women
and a scuffle ensued near the
door. Sharma attempted to grab
the handle but missed and fell off
the running train," said Minu Das,
who was in the compartment.
The incident occurred at 7.50
pm. When the train stopped at
Hind Motor less than a minute
later, some women who had not
participated in the violence got
off and raised an alarm. Locals
gathered and stopped the train.
Within minutes, a strong mob
had gathered and before long,
scores of people had gathered.
They blocked the tracks and
pelted stones at passing trains.
At one point of time, the RPF
attempted a lathi-chrge but this
aggravated the situation further.
Sharma was picked up from the
tracks and taken to Uttarpara
State General Hospital where he
died of serious head injuries.
"We have received a complaint
against a woman constable and
taken her into custody. The man
is being probed," an Eastern
Railway spokesperson said.
Yadav contended that authorities
may have arrested or fined
Sharma for boarding a women-
only train but there was no
reason to throw him out. "The
railways will have to compensate
his family or we shall hold
agitations again from
Wednesday," he warned.
