Five men enjoy booze party on Gujarat-bound train, de-boarded

The accused were booked under Section 66/1B of Railways Act and were produced before a court in Surat on Thursday

A 31-year-old Thane woman, who was travelling with her two kids to her hometown via the Gujarat-bound Sayaji Nagari Superfast Express on Wednesday, raised an alarm as a group of co-passengers were drinking alcohol, smoking and creating a nuisance. Her sister told mid-day that a policeman had warned the same set of passengers at Dadar railway station before they boarded the train, yet the men were boozing as the train was making its way to the dry state.

After the matter was escalated to the chief public relations officer (CPRO), Western Railway (WR), Mumbai, Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Government Railway Police (GRP) personnel immediately swung into action and five men were de-boarded at Bharuch railway station. The woman, requesting anonymity, told mid-day that inebriated men were behaving in a suspicious manner and they had been hopping from the AC 3-tier coach to the adjacent sleeper coach where the rest of their group was entitled to travel.

"I was travelling in the AC 3-tier section with my two small children. It was around 6.30 pm when I got a whiff of something odd. The smell was unbearable in the AC compartment, but I initially ignored it. Then my elder son needed to go to the toilet, so I took him to it. While I was standing guard at the toilet door, I noticed a group of men boozing and smoking between the two compartments," the woman said.

Cases are rarely registered against those consuming liquor on Gujarat-bound trains

"After I returned, I decided to change my seat as by now the drunk revellers had started moving around and were being very loud. This was all very unusual and I was enraged. Since my seat was next to the entrance, I was really uncomfortable. Above all, they were reeking like they had not taken a bath for days," recalled the woman, who complained to the travelling ticket examiner (TTE).

After the TTE warned the group of drunk men, ‘they became a little cautious,' she added. "But they didn't stop moving around as a few of their group members were travelling in the adjacent compartment, a sleeper coach." It was around 7.30 pm when the woman's younger sister called her. "I told my sister about the situation, and she informed the CPRO," she added.

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Help arrived in 15 minutes

Her younger sister Lata Sharma, a TV journalist, said, "I called the CPRO, Sumit Thakur, immediately. After I shared my sister's travel details, the cops reached her coach within 15 minutes at Bharuch railway station and the group of drunk men were de-boarded." The visiting team of police personnel, including a woman cop, ensured that the woman and her children safely reached their destination at Gandhidham Junction.

"An officer who addresses passenger grievances was in constant touch with me. He also ensured that a woman cop escorted me. She accompanied me up to Ahmedabad and ensured that I was safe," the woman said. Though an on-duty TTE from the Vadodara division offered to have her seat changed, by now the woman was comfortable with her co-passengers.

Talking to mid-day, Thakur said, "Five men were de-boarded at Bharuch railway station by the team of GRP and RPF personnel. Three of them were found drunk." "The inebriated passengers have been identified as Naresh, 33; Hari Kishan, 36; and Venkatesh Rao, 37. They were booked under Section 66/1B of Railways Act and were produced before a court in Surat on Thursday and were granted bail," said complaint inspector Kuldeep Patil of Vadodara division. The sale and consumption of liquor are banned in the neighbouring state. While some passengers carry liquor mixed with soft drinks to consume on Gujarat-bound trains, most such cases go unregistered.

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Day in March when incident occurred