In the third incident of staff members being attacked at the Kherki-Dhaula toll plaza here in less than a month, the driver of a bus allegedly tried to run over a man on Sunday after he was asked to slow down and pay the toll charges. A formal complaint has been registered with the police in this regard.
The incident happened around noon when toll manager Daya Ram Yadav signalled a bus going towards Dharuhera in Rewari to stop and pay the toll fee.
“Instead of slowing down, the driver accelerated and tried to run over the manager. He jumped aside in the nick of time. The driver broke the toll boom and drove away,” said Kirpal Singh, a toll plaza official.
Earlier instances
The incident comes two days after another staff member at the toll plaza was attacked over the same issue. “On the evening of May 20, a motorist sought exemption from the toll fee claiming to be a resident of a neighbouring village. The Registration Certificate of the vehicle, however, was found to be forged. At this, the toll staff seized the RC. The motorist then called his friends and relatives, who stormed into the Control Room of the toll plaza and brutally beat up the staff,” said T.C. Rao, Chief Managing Director, Skylark Group — the company that manages the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway.
According to Mr. Rao, motorists claiming exemption using forged Registration Certificates have become routine at the toll.
“We have a system in place to verify the Registration Certificates. In the past 10 days, we have caught 113 motorists seeking exemption from toll fee using forged RCs,” he said.
A complaint had been filed in this regard as well.
Police inaction?
Mr. Rao added that no action had been taken despite repeated complaints being made to the police about the use of forged RCs and frequent attacks on the staff.
“Either the police are hand-in-glove with these villagers, or they are scared to take action against them,” he said.
Locals from 31 neighbouring villages are exempt from paying at the Kherki-Dhaula toll plaza. This was done at the behest of the district administration.
In a similar incident earlier this month, a mob comprising over a dozen villagers had vandalised the toll over payment of fee.
“We are in the process of collecting evidence and identifying the culprits. After this, raids will be conducted to make arrests,” said Inspector Anand Kumar, Station House Officer (Kherki Dhaula Police Station).
On Sunday, a bus almost ran over a toll manager who signalled it to stop and pay the fee
