For mayor, it's Sena before common man

Supporting vandals who pelted stones at buses, mayor said BEST shouldn't have run them at all

Supporting vandals who pelted stones at buses, mayor said BEST shouldn't have run them at all

For people who braved the fear and chaos to get to work during yesterday's bandh, mayor Shraddha Jadhav's comments will add insult to injury.

Bus-ted: Mobs attack BEST buses that were plying on the streets during the bandh. PIC/NIMESH DAVE

The BEST, which was running 30 per cent of its buses till 6 pm yesterday, turned out to be a saviour for many people who had to get to work or attend to sick relatives. Ask the first citizen of the city what she felt about the buses being stoned, however, and she'll tell you there was no need for them to be on the road in the first place. "BEST buses shouldn't have run on the road on a bandh day at all. What was the need?"u00a0 Jadhav told MiD DAY.

'Irresponsible'
Reacting to the statement, Rajhans Singh, MLA and Congress corporator said, "It is a very irresponsible statement. Shraddha Jadhav is the mayor of the city and should think twice about what she says. What is a common man supposed to do if he has to travel urgently and there is no mode of transport available? BEST buses are a means of public transport and not any particular party's property."

Even former mayor and party colleague Shubha Raul disagreed with Jadhav. "I think many people rely on BEST buses on bandh days. People have to get to work and the sick have to get to hospitals. I think not plying buses is not the solution. Instead, we should reduce the number of buses. The people throwing stones are ignorant."

Worst hit
Traffic police officials said BEST buses were the worst hit on the roads due to the bandh. "Where police officials were not around, protestors lobbed paver blocks wrenched from footpaths at the buses. They found these blocks more effective than bricks or stones," said a senior traffic police official.

"BEST incurred a revenue loss of Rs 2.90 crore apart from damage to property that must have run into lakhs.

Some activists pelt stones at a BEST bus during the bandh at Ghatkopar yesterday. PIC/RAJU SHELAR

Yet, the buses were run for the common man's benefit. It is very wrong on the mayor's part to say something like this. Her party should have protested peacefully instead of damaging public property, especially since they are in power in the BMC," said BEST committee member Ravi Raja.

According to senior BEST officials, the damage to the corporation's property is to the tune of Rs 2.40 lakh.

No decrease today
Meanwhile, BEST officials said there will be no decrease in the number of buses on the road today.

"The collector is assessing the damage. Once that is done, the buses will go to our workshop for repair, which should take one or two days. However, this won't affect the schedule tomorrow. We always have extra fleet ready," said OP Gupta, general manager, BEST.u00a0

Voices
I am happy that the BEST was running buses during the bandh. I had to go to a close friend's wedding and the buses came to my rescue. The mayor should think about the common man before saying something like this.
Shobha Pillai, PR executive, Ghatkopar

Though I support the cause of today's bandh, I don't support vandalism. I don't agree with the mayor as many people use the BEST buses during emergencies. She should have ensured that they don't damage public property instead of saying that the buses shouldn't have been run.
Mithun Roy, Interior designer, Andheri

155, number of BEST buses that were damaged in stone pelting yesterday
1,200, buses plying on the road during the bandh. 4,000 buses ply on a normal day.
45 lakh, number of people that use the BEST service every day
374, number of bus routes in the city