Pics of couple being thrashed for ‘hugging’ go viral, Kolkata Metro says ‘it never happened’

Kolkata Metro, which is the country’s first Mass Rapid Transit System, witnessed a shocking incident on Monday evening when a couple was thrashed for “standing too close to each other”. The incident took place at Dum Dum metro when the youth was beaten by a group of passengers. Images of the incident, that have no gone viral, show the woman trying to rescue her male companion from the clutches of the attackers, but she too wasn’t spared. It was only later when a group of people managed to the pacify the crowd and save the couple, Bengali daily Anandbazar Patrika reported. The brawl began at Chandni Chowk metro station when fellow passengers, most them reportedly over 50, started questioning the youth about why he was hugging the woman who was travelling with him. The couple retorted by asking how the could act irk them. This was allegedly followed by some lewd comments from a group of passengers. While the youth did not object to the banter, passengers got agitated. As soon as the metro reached the Dum Dum metro station, the youth was forced out of the train to the platform and beaten black and blue, the report says. Speaking to FinancialExpress.com, Indira Banerjee, the Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of Kolkata Metro said that they were yet to receive any complaint on the matter either from the passengers or the couple. “Whatever happened, the complaint will be lodged by the concerned people (Security staff). Neither the girl nor the boy has registered any complaint. The complaint has also not been lodged by any co-passenger. The entire incident took place inside the metro coach. We have checked the footage but didn’t get anything. Unless and until we get any name, details of address, how can we begin the inquiry? We have recorded the statement of station master and RPF staff available on duty.” However, when we got in touch with the spokesperson again to inquire if they had decided on their official line of action in the matter, we were told that the incident never happened at all. “Senior security officers again checked the CCTV footage of the station. It shows that as soon as the train stopped, the passengers deboarded the train and went out of the exit door. We have not seen any untoward incident. We want to probe the incident but without any complaint on the matter we can’t proceed.” The incident has raised questions over the safety and security of metro commuters and excessive ‘moral policing’. Section 294 of the Indian Penal Code 294 punishes the person/ persons for causing annoyance of others by doing any obscene act in any public place or singing, reciting or uttering any obscene song, ballad or words, in or near any public place. The maximum punishments may extend to three months. Source: Indian Express