Bengaluru: Men and women who congregated on Brigade Road and M.G. Road to usher in the New Year said that by 11.45 p.m. on Saturday, the crowd started getting unruly. “Unlike previous years, the policemen found it difficult to control the crowd even after midnight,” said a photographer.
“There were some hooligans in the crowd who were abusing photographers when they did not take pictures of their groups. It was then we noticed that men were trying to protect their female companions from some people in the crowd,” said a photographer, adding that some of the women were weeping.
Sudheer (name changed), a youngster who had come with his friends, said that he saw men riding bikes in a rash manner and that the policemen could not do anything. “Every year minor incidents happen, but this time it went out of control. Some men passed out on the road,” he said.
Siddharth, a 28-year-old who has been living in Bengaluru for eight years, said that he was on Church Street with his friend when he saw an unruly mob go on the rampage.
“It was impossible to walk on Church Street due to the crowd. My friend, a girl, started crying. I tried my best to console her. Later, we took refuge near a police van. However, the policemen were of no use. I somehow managed to get an auto-rickshaw and left the locality,” he said. He has decided never to visit M.G. Road for a New Year party. “This is the first and last time. The venue is unsafe even for men,” he added.
A 25-year-old woman who stepped out to party in Indiranagar said that she felt unsafe despite presence of police personnel. “Not just on New Year’s eve, whenever I head out for a party, I never feel safe travelling alone. It gets worse on New Year’s eve,” she said.
Malini Krishnamurthy, Additional Commissioner of Police, West, said the police will track down people who misbehaved with women and take action against them.
