COVID-19: FIR registered against conductor, drivers for forcing girl and mother off bus in Mathura

The girl died within 30 minutes and the post-mortem report suggested that she died following a cardiac arrest.

Image for representational purposes only

Nearly a month after a 19-year-old girl from Delhi died after she was allegedly forced off a Uttar Pradesh State Roadways Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) bus on the Yamuna Expressway by the conductor as he suspected her to be infected with COVID-19 , an FIR has been registered against the conductor and the two drivers by the Mathura police.

The incident happened on June 15 when the girl was travelling with her mother from Delhi to Shikohabad in Firozabad district. The conductor allegedly forced the girl and her mother off the bus near Maant in Mathura.

The girl died within 30 minutes and the post-mortem report suggested that she died following a cardiac arrest.

In her complaint, Sarvesh Devi, mother of the deceased Anishka, said they boarded the bus from Noida. She said the girl fainted because of heat and exhaustion but some passengers and the conductor felt that she had COVID-19. The conductor got into an argument with her, wrapped the girl in a blanket, and forced them to get down at a toll plaza, where the girl died after some time.

Shirish Chandra, Superintendent of Police (Rural), Mathura, said an FIR had been registered against the unidentified conductor under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) on the basis of the complaint lodged by the mother in Maant police station. “At the time of the incident, the mother didn’t file any complaint. Perhaps, she took time to get over the tragedy. When she lodged a complaint at the Maant Police Station on July 11, we registered an FIR and have asked the UPSRTC to share the names of the conductor and drivers who were on duty. We are investigating the role of drivers and what led to such an incident,” he said.

The UPSRTC has also ordered an inquiry into what led to the death of the girl. “Strict action would be taken against those found guilty. The conductor has been identified as Brijpal Singh. He could not give his statement because of the lockdown. The mother has yet to submit the ticket they were travelling on,” said Manoj Pundir, Regional Manager, UPSRTC. He said ordering the inquiry took time because he had taken charge recently.

The incident came to light after the Delhi Commission of Women took note of the incident and asked the Mathura police to submit a report on it.