People gathered as three men beat up the 20-year-old at the Adarsh Nagar railway station. But no one came forward to help the man as he cried in pain.
It was too late by the time the police reached the spot.
Head constable Lal Babu, who caught the three accused, said timely intervention could have saved Rahul. He said he was in another part of the station, away from platform number one, when he spotted the men thrashing Rahul.
‘Crowd did little’
The platforms and tracks at the railway station are manned by a Home Guard and the head constable from the Delhi Police. They are assisted by a constable from the Railway Protection Force.
According to Mr. Babu, the crowd did little before and after his arrival. “There were anywhere between 35 to 40 people on the platform, but it was left to two of us to stop the three men,” he said, adding that it was easier to arrest the trio as they were unarmed.
The station sees major footfall on Mondays and Fridays when Bihar-bound trains ferry migrant labourers. On other days, the station sees few people who travel in the local trains.
In denial
When The Hindu went to the spot, some people there chose to keep mum. Others, shockingly, denied the incident altogether. This included the owner of the canteen, next to which Rahul was attacked.
No comments
Many others, too, said no such incident took place. Those who acknowledged it said they weren’t present when it happened. In fact, not one person, including the railway staff, said they had witnessed the incident. The station manager and his senior, too, said they were not entitled to talk about the issue.
