Booking a bus driver triggers mini-riot

Booking a bus driver triggers mini-riot
Vijay Times

Bangalore: An apparently correct act by the traffic police in booking an erring BMTC bus driver snow-balled into rioting and arson in Goraguntepalya here on Wednesday morning, with the police as well as the BMTC buses becoming the target of the irate mobs.

Police resorted to a lathicharge and fired 15 rounds of tear gas shells to disperse the mob. Traffic on Bangalore-Tumkur road was affected for over two hours.

The drama unfolded at 8.45 am when Vishwanath, the driver of BMTC bus (IX depot) route number 250-N plying between Shivajinagar and Mysore Electrical Industries (MEI) stop near Goraguntepalya allegedly jumped the ‘red’ signal near CMTI junction. Traffic Sub Inspector H Siddaiah of RMC Yard traffic police station stopped the bus and booked him for the rule violation. The driver refused to comply and stopped the bus in the middle of the road, before alerting his fellow drivers plying other routes. The drivers responded by stopping their buses and arguing with the police in defence of their colleague.

The commuters were angered by the arbitrary suspension of bus services and started pelting stones at the BMTC buses and the police. Five policemen sustained injuries in the incident. They set fire to a Hoysala jeep, while overturning four police jeeps, including two Hoysalas and vehicles belonging to Assistant Commissioner of Police, J C Nagar, and the Rajajinagar Police Station Inspector. Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Narayana Gowda’s car was also damaged. Over 30 vehicles including 15 BMTC and private buses and a press vehicle were damaged by commuters.