The police resorted to lathi-charge to disperse city bus drivers and conductors who gathered at Pumpwell on Thursday afternoon after a bus driver was allegedly assaulted by the police during checking of vehicles after the theft of a cash box from a van.
After receiving information about the theft, the police set up check-points across the city to nab the accused.
However, during checking of vehicles, a bus driver was allegedly assaulted by the police in Pumpwell. According to eyewitnesses, Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh's vehicle was at Pumpwell. The bus driver did not allow Mr. Singh's vehicle to proceed ahead. This led a senior police officer to physically remove the driver from his bus. The driver was also allegedly assaulted. According to the eyewitness, even Mr. Singh allegedly assaulted the driver.
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As the news of the alleged assault spread, a large number of bus drivers threatened a strike and gathered at Pumpwell. Traffic in the area, including the two national highways, was disrupted for nearly two hours. The police resorted to lathi-charge to disperse the crowd and restore traffic.
Mr. Singh said that there was “no question of assault”, and the bus driver had to be forcibly stopped for checking. He said if the bus drivers wanted to make an issue of it, they could file a complaint and “we (police) know how to deal with it”.