Dharmapuri: A conductor and driver of a state-run bus who offloaded a woman passenger, carrying beef, meant for sale, were been booked by Tamil Nadu Police on charges of being casteist under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, in Dharmapuri, on Thursday.
The driver and conductor of a Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus from Navalai, Harur, have already been suspended for allegedly forcing the woman off their bus.
The woman, identified as Paanjalai, (59), a Dalit, was on her way to sell beef from Harur when she was forced to get down in the middle of the forest.
According to the victim, the conductor, identified as Raghu, reportedly chided Paanjalai for carrying beef everyday on his bus. After he blew the whistle, the driver switched off the bus in the forest area. The conductor extolled the other passengers in the bus stating that the bus will not move until she gets down. The other passengers joined the bus crew in forcing the woman off the bus.
Panjalai said she pleaded that she be let down in the next bus stop and that she be pardoned as a one time measure, all of which fell on the deaf ears of the bus crew. She was dropped off in the Moppiripatty forest area.
As she struggled to walk with the load, the woman was offered a ride free of cost by a private bus plying in the same route. She got to her stop and then informed her family about the incident.
Paanjalai's family and locals confronted the bus staff later that evening. The driver, Sasikumar and Raghu, brushed off the allegations, claiming that they had dropped her off at a bus stop as requested by her.
Pending official inquiry, the TNSTC Dharmapuri division officials placed both the bus crew members under suspension.
"My husband died 30 years ago. Since his passing, it is this beef 'sukka'(beef fry) that has helped me eke out a living. I have been doing this for the past 30 years. I come everyday to Harur and buy beef here and go back to my place and sell it. This has been my routine," Paanjalai said.
"The (said bus) conductor has been taking exceptions against me carrying beef in a closed container. I usually prefer not to board his bus. I boarded the bus he was running since I came with my brother's grandson who suggested that none can stop us in a government bus. But things didn't go as planned. I was harassed and forced to get down from the vehicle," she said in her complaint.
She also accused the conductor of not taking her money and issuing her tickets and asking her whether she was a 'woman at all' for carrying beef.
Based on Paanjalai's complaint, Harur Police have registered a case. The bus crew have been booked under the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Women Harassement (Prevention) Act as well.
