Mahila Morcha protest over free travel scheme triggers tense scenes
The KSRTC bus station here on Monday witnessed some tense moments after a section of commuters locked horns with Mahila Morcha activists who were staging
The KSRTC bus station here on Monday witnessed some tense moments after a section of commuters locked horns with Mahila Morcha activists who were staging a protest demanding free travel for women in all KSRTC buses. The protest, held shortly after the district-level inauguration of the free travel scheme for women in ordinary KSRTC buses, was inaugurated by Mahila Morcha State secretary Manju Suresh. Mahila Morcha Kottayam West district president Usha Suresh, district general secretary Veena Venugopal and other leaders were also present.
The agitation, however, took a dramatic turn when a group of women protesters boarded a Fast Passenger bus parked at the station and demanded free travel. As the bus crew maintained that the service could not be operated amid the protest, commuters began voicing their opposition and asked the protesters to get off the bus. With the protesters refusing to back down and accusing the State government of reneging on its election promise, a heated exchange soon broke out between the two sides.
Several passengers pointed to the inconvenience caused by the protest and argued that the agitation should be directed against the government or KSRTC authorities rather than ordinary commuters. The situation became more tense after a few BJP workers joined the protest, even as they maintained that they had no intention of blocking the bus service. The standoff finally ended after police and KSRTC officials intervened and persuaded the protesters to step down from the bus, allowing the service to resume. Earlier in the day, Kerala Legislative Assembly Speaker Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan formally launched the free travel scheme for women in ordinary KSRTC buses by handing over a zero-fare ticket to a woman passenger travelling on the Kottayam–Cherthala route via Kumarakom.
District panchayat president Joshy Philip, Kottayam municipality chairperson M. P. Santhosh Kumar and District Transport Officer S. Ramesh also addressed the function. Under the scheme, women will be eligible for free travel on 22 ordinary KSRTC services operating from the Kottayam depot.
The BriefWire