Chennai: Two bikers beat up the conductor of a Metropolitan Transport Corporation bus for trying to move their parked motorcycle that was blocking the bus’s path at the Kasturba Hospital bus stop in Triplicane on Tuesday. The two attacked Keshavulu, 50, for touching their vehicle without their consent. Even as the conductor tried to explain that the way they parked it was blocking the road, the two chased and hit him.
Passersby intervened and confronted the youths, who then fled the scene. The injured conductor was taken to a nearby government hospital for treatment. He later filed a case against the attackers. This marks the second attack on government bus crew in the past one week in Tamil Nadu. The first attack was at Kumbakonam, when a group of youths on two-wheelers refused to give way to a bus. When the driver overtook them, they chased and assaulted the bus crew. “Whenever such incidents occur, higher-ups seldom visit the scene to support the attacked crew. The police must act against these offenders, especially college students who often receive only a warning due to concerns about their future”, said K Anbalagan, a transportation activist.
This incident highlights the alarming trend of violence against public transport workers in Tamil Nadu. Last week, a similar attack took place in Kumbakonam, where a group of youths assaulted the crew of a government bus for overtaking them. These attacks underscore the need for stricter action against offenders and measures to ensure the safety of those providing essential public transportation services.
The transportation activist K Anbalagan has called for higher-ups to visit the scene of such incidents to support the attacked crew and for the police to take stricter action against offenders, especially college students who often receive only a warning due to concerns about their future. He also emphasized the need for awareness campaigns to educate the public about the importance of respecting public transport workers and adhering to traffic rules.
