BENGALURU: Following a series of complaints pertaining to misdemeanors with the public and dereliction of duty by Deputy Chief Ticketing Inspector V Santhosh Kumar, his services were terminated by the South Western Railway Zone recently. He shot to national notoriety after a video of him abusing and misbehaving with a young woman at Krishnarajapuram railway station on March 14 went viral.
The woman filed an FIR against him at the Government Railway Police station at Bengaluru Cantonment under Section 354 of the IPC (criminal force used to outrage the modesty of a woman) on March 17. It has now come to light that Kumar was dismissed a day later.
The Bengaluru Railway Division had suspended him immediately after the video was released on social media. Three internal chargesheets had been filed with the Division against Kumar and the latest incident seems to be the last straw.
Additional Divisional Railway Manager, Administration, Bengaluru Division, Kusuma Hariprasad said, “There were previous complaints against him from the public and inquiries were on. They pertained to frequent absenteeism and rude behaviour with the public.”
A top railway source said, “Kumar had been charge-sheeted thrice already by the division. Inquiries were on. His targets pertaining to ticket collections were never met.”
The GRP arrested Santhosh on March 21 and produced him before the 14th judicial magistrate who sent him to jail. “After three days at Parappana Agrahara jail, he obtained bail,” a cop said.