Kerala police register non-bailable charges against mayor, MLA on KSRTC driver’s complaint

According to the FIR, the accused had blocked the public transport, abused the driver and the passengers, and destroyed the memory card of the CCTV installed inside the bus.

ByPTI

Published May 07, 2024 | 11:03 AMUpdatedMay 07, 2024 | 11:03 AM

Mayor Arya Rajendran and MLA Sachin Dev.

Kerala police on Monday, 6 May, registered a case against city Mayor Arya Rajendran, her MLA husband Sachin Dev and three others, invoking non-bailable charges based on a complaint by a KSRTC driver who had alleged they had blocked the bus he was driving and obstructed him from performing his duty.

The FIR was filed by the cantonment police after receiving directions from a city court. The driver approached the court seeking a probe against the mayor, her husband, and their other co-passengers in their private car.

The police have invoked various sections, including 353 (Assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of his duty), 447 (criminal trespass), 341 (wrongful restraint), 294 B (uttering obscene words), and 201 (tampering with evidence) of the Indian Penal Code.

According to the FIR, the accused had blocked the public transport, abused the driver and the passengers, and destroyed the memory card of the CCTV installed inside the bus.

The driver had approached the court, saying the police were not registering the case based on his complaint that the mayor and her family had blocked the vehicle and stopped him from doing his duty.

Earlier, a case was registered against the driver of the Kerala State Road Transport Service (KSRTC) alleging that he had shown sexually suggestive gestures at the mayor and her relative while they were travelling in their private vehicle.

The visuals of the mayor and her family questioning the driver of the bus after blocking it with their car at a signal near Palayam recently have gone viral.

The driver has denied the allegations and claimed that it was an issue of not giving way to her vehicle.

Also Read: Kerala Mayor row: Road rage mystery deepens; Will missing footage decide the fate?

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