City bus drivers in Mangaluru continue to flout orders of top-cop, compromising public safety
A lot has been said about the carelessness and the menace the city bus drivers in Mangaluru has created on the roads of the city leading to multiple fatalities and casualties over the last few years. Several people have died due to overspeeding buses or the carelessness with which these bus drivers ply buses on the road in the city.
Several media reports have been published calling for action against these drivers and regulation for the buses and its drivers to drive with more care and while keeping public safety in mind. But the pleas of these media reports to create the awareness among the drivers have fallen into deaf ears.
Last year, former Commissioner of City Police, Kuldeep Jain, issued an order to cancel a bus stop at Bendorwell junction following a fatal accident involving a city bus. The move aimed to alleviate traffic congestion and enhance pedestrian safety. A banner was prominently displayed at the bus stop, indicating the cancellation of the stop and prohibiting city and government buses from picking up or dropping off passengers at the location.
However, the order was blatantly ignored by bus drivers, who continued to halt at the junction, disregarding the safety directive. Even in the presence of traffic police constables deployed to manage the junction, the drivers persisted in their violations. The banner, meant to inform the public about the order, was torn down, further highlighting the drivers' disregard for the rules. The traffic police almost always turned a blind-eye to these bus drivers flouting the orders of their boss, the top-cop of the city.
Jain was also subsequently transferred from Mangaluru, following which new police commissioner Anupam Agarwal took charge as the new top cop of the city. But that did not change anything, the drivers, kept flouting the order, jeopardizing the public safety and traffic cops kept turning blind eye to the violations.
Despite the confirmation from Jain himself a few days before he was transferred, that the order was in place, its effective implementation remained a challenge. The buses, particularly during peak hours at Bendorewell Circle, caused significant traffic disruptions, inconveniencing the general public. Notably, the drivers displayed aggressive behavior, honking incessantly and resorting to verbal abuse when other vehicles caused delays, asserting their lack of regard for road etiquette and safety.
Vartha Bharati attempted to contact the current Commissioner of Police, Anupam Agarwal, for a comment on the matter. However, Agarwal was unavailable for a response. It will be interesting to see if Agarwal mends the social and road behaviour or these bus drivers or gets a routine transfer like his predecessor Jain while maintaining that “the order is still in place but we are unable to effectively implement it”
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UP Cong holds statewide protest seeking probe into FIR against Swami Avimukteshwaranand
Lucknow (PTI): The Uttar Pradesh Congress on Wednesday staged a statewide protest demanding a fair and transparent inquiry into the FIR lodged against Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati and those who filed the complaint against him.
In a statement issued here, the party said memorandums addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi were submitted through district magistrates in all districts of the state.
Uttar Pradesh Congress spokesperson Manish Hindvi told PTI that the memorandums were handed over through the district administration in all 75 districts.
In the memorandum, the party alleged that Saraswati and his disciples were "unnecessarily harassed and humiliated" by police on the occasion of Amavasya and were prevented from taking a ritual bath (at the Magh Mela). It further alleged that some disciples were manhandled and taken to a police station.
The memorandum also claimed that an FIR was later registered against Saraswati, his disciple Swami Mukundanand Brahmachari and several unidentified persons in a sexual harassment case. It termed the case a "conspiracy" aimed at tarnishing the seer's reputation.
Citing Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution, the memorandum stated that these provisions guarantee religious freedom and the right of religious denominations to manage their own affairs.
It described the position of shankaracharya held by Saraswati as "one of the highest spiritual posts in Sanatan tradition" and alleged that the entire episode appeared to have been "orchestrated in a planned manner".
"We request that the background of the persons who got the FIR registered be investigated in a transparent manner by a retired high court judge and strict action be taken against them," the memorandum said.
It also sought a "fair and transparent probe" into the allegations levelled against Saraswati so that the truth could be established.
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai had told reporters in Varanasi after meeting Saraswati that the party stood firmly with him.
The Congress said it would continue to press for an impartial inquiry into the entire episode.
On February 21, an FIR was lodged in Prayagraj against Saraswati and his disciple Mukundanand Brahmachari on charges of sexually abusing two persons, including a minor, over the past year at a gurukul and religious congregations, including the recently concluded Magh Mela.
Days after he was booked, Saraswati had said on Monday that he would not oppose his arrest and asserted that the "fabricated story" would be exposed sooner or later.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Saraswati alleged that criminals rule in Uttar Pradesh, level allegations and influence investigations, as he denied having any contact with the two persons for whose alleged sexual abuse he has been booked.
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