Bengaluru auto driver denies slapping woman passenger, expresses regret
Bengaluru: Autorickshaw driver Mutturaj R, aged 47, was arrested by the Magadi Road police for allegedly slapping a woman passenger after she canceled her ride. He was released on bail six days later and has expressed regret and shame for his behavior, although he denied the assault allegations.
Mutturaj, a resident of Chikkalasandra, operates a rented auto to support his family. The incident occurred on September 3 after he accepted a ride request through the Ola app. Upon reaching the pickup point in Rajajinagar, he found that the passenger had canceled the ride and was boarding another autorickshaw. Frustrated by the situation, Mutturaj confronted the woman. According to him, he only attempted to snatch her mobile phone, suspecting she was calling the police, but he insists he did not slap her.
The incident was captured on video by the woman and went viral on social media, leading to Mutturaj's arrest on September 5. He was sent to prison the following day.
In a statement, Mutturaj expressed deep regret, saying he felt ashamed after seeing the video at the police station. He admitted to using abusive language but denied any physical assault, stating, “Hang me to death if she or the police prove I assaulted her.”
The Peace Auto & Cab Drivers Association assisted Mutturaj in securing bail, with drivers contributing Rs 33,000 for legal expenses. The association also plans to approach Ola and other aggregators to request the unblocking of Mutturaj’s account and to speak with RTO officials to prevent the cancellation of his driving license.
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Railway lines as fence could cut cost of barricading to curb man-elephant conflicts: MP Wadiyar
Bengaluru, Sept 17: MP Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar has suggested that to bring down the exorbitant cost barricading – estimated to cost around Rs 1.3 to Rs 1.5 crore per kilometre – railway lines could be used to construct fences on Tuesday.
Wadiyar took to X to share the letter he had sent to Union Environment Forest & Climate Change Minister Bhupendra Yadav.
Stating that “railway (lines) barricading” is proving to be an effective way to restrict the movement of elephants, he suggested that this should be taken up on a large scale.
“Upon consultation with the relevant authorities, it has come to my understanding that the cost of barricading per kilometre comes to Rs 1.3 crore to Rs 1.5 crore. Given that the border of the forests in my constituency stretches to over 400 km, with around 280 km of forest border requiring immediate barricading, the cost of such an exercise will reach Rs 350 crore to Rs 400 crore,” he wrote in his letter.
He said the environment ministry could make a direct request with the railway ministry for an allocation of railway lines, thus reducing the cost of the project to just that of labour cost.
“The benefits of this initiative are manifold, from reduction of human casualties, protection of property and livelihood, to conservation of elephants and, most importantly, promoting human-elephant coexistence, which is the need of the hour,” he added.
Working towards safer coexistence in Mysore-Kodagu! Submitted proposal to Union Environment Forest & Climate change Minister Shri Bhupendra Yadav Ji for railway barricading to reduce elephant-human conflicts. pic.twitter.com/VjOWIF1TTC
— Yaduveer Wadiyar (@yaduveerwadiyar) September 17, 2024
