Bilaspur: In a tale that reads like a soap opera gone off the rails, Venkatgiri Rao, a station master in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, found his personal life colliding with his professional responsibilities in the worst possible way just because of one 'OK'. In the process, the Indian Railways lost more than just time after Rao's marital spat led to an unexpected route detour worth Rs 3 crores in damages.
The drama began one night in June 2012 when Venkatgiri Rao, hailing from Visakhapatnam, was on duty. In the middle of his shift, he received a call from his wife, when both indulged in a heated exchange of words. Their argument escalated, but Rao, attempting to de-escalate, ended the call with a tense 'OK' while he was simultaneously on another line with a signal man. However, this 'OK' was misinterpreted by the signal man, who assumed it was a go-ahead signal for a train. The result? A train was inadvertently sent into a restricted Naxal area, where rail traffic is prohibited overnight from 10 pm to 6 am. Due to the blunder, Railways lost Rs 3 crores while Rao faced suspension.
The station master, unable to handle the constant tension at home, approached the Visakhapatnam Family Court for divorce from his wife who hails from Bhilai in Durg district. However, with his wife making a plea in the Supreme Court, the case was transferred to Durg Family Court where his wife levelled allegations of dowry harassment against Rao and his family members. But the court rejected the pleas. Later Rao knocked the doors of Chhatisgarh High Court. According to his lawyer, Vipin Tiwari, the couple’s marital troubles had long affected Rao’s peace of mind, and the phone altercation that night was just one of many such disputes. On November 5, the High Court in Bilaspur accepted his divorce petition, ruling that his wife’s behavior amounted to mental cruelty.