Bus War Turns Violent, Five Vehicles Vandalised In Indore

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): The ongoing rivalry among bus operators in the city has come out in the open. After five buses of Chouhan Travels were vandalised at different locations in the city, bus operator Dharmendra Singh Chouhan of Dewas lodged a complaint with Commissioner of Police Santosh Kumar Singh, alleging repeated attacks on his buses, assault on his staff and pressure to pay illegal extortion money (agentie).

He accused Rahul Sonkar and 15 to 20 of his associates of carrying out the attacks after he allegedly refused to pay the money.

According to Chouhan, on June 25, bus number MP41P0815 was allegedly stopped by the accused and forcibly taken to their office, where the bus staff were assaulted.

The operator claimed that after a call was made to Dial 112, police reached the spot and got the bus released.

He further alleged that on June 25 and 26, buses bearing registration numbers MP41ZH4005, MP41ZH5504, MP41P1068 and MP41P0915 were also vandalised at different locations, causing losses worth lakhs of rupees.

The complaint states that women, children and elderly passengers were travelling in the buses during the attacks, creating panic among them. Some passengers also allegedly suffered injuries and other losses.

Chouhan alleged that Rahul Sonkar, who operates buses on the Indore-Bhopal route under the name Maa Sharda Travels, and his brother Kapil Sonkar were pressuring bus operators to pay illegal money. He claimed he was repeatedly targeted for refusing to pay.

The bus operator also alleged that despite naming Rahul Sonkar and his associates in his complaints, police did not register a named FIR.

He claimed that Bhanwarkuan police registered a case only against unidentified persons, Chhoti Gwaltoli police accepted only a written complaint, while action in other police station areas has also been delayed.

Seeking immediate intervention, Chouhan demanded that a named FIR be registered against the accused, a fair and high-level investigation be conducted, strict legal action be taken against those involved, and police protection be provided to him, his staff, buses and passengers.

He warned that if timely action is not taken, a major untoward incident could occur in the future.

In the past three days, five Chouhan Travels buses were vandalised by bikers at four different locations in the city.

The drivers and conductors lodged complaints at Bhanwarkuan, Tilak Nagar, Sanyogitaganj and Chhoti Gwaltoli police stations.

However, only the Bhanwarkuan police registered a case against two persons named by bus driver Chandar Singh.