THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Even as he pleaded innocent to the charges levelled against him, temporary KSRTC bus driver L H Yedu who was involved in the altercation with Thiruvananthapuram Mayor Arya Rajendran on Saturday night is likely to lose his job. On Monday, the KSRTC vigilance executive director asked the central depot unit head to relieve Yedu of his duties.
The controversy surrounding the incident however refused to die down with both parties levelling serious charges against each other. Speaking to TNIE, Yedu refuted allegations that he made sexually coloured gestures at the mayor and her family travelling in a car. He accused the mayor and her husband, Balussery MLA Sachin Dev, of attempting to intimidate him. “I didn’t make any obscene gesture,” said Yedu, a resident of Nemom.
He said the incident occurred around 10pm when the bus was coming from Pattom.
“This car was trying to overtake through the left and there was constant honking from the car driver. Though I gave way, the car couldn’t pass because there was an autorickshaw in front of them. Later, at Plamoodu, while passing through the one-way traffic, they tried to overtake again. When I didn’t yield, their ego was hurt. They made a scene by parking the car in front of the bus and threatening me,” Yedu said.
Meanwhile, new CCTV footage has pushed the mayor-MLA couple onto the back foot. The visuals showed the mayor’s car parked across the road on the zebra line, blocking the bus. Arya’s fresh allegation that the driver was under the influence of intoxicants could not be proven in the medical test carried out immediately after the incident.
She had earlier said the bus was not obstructed. However, footage from cameras near the shopping complex at Palayam spoke otherwise.
'Reacted as driver humiliated womanhood': Arya
The police have slapped sexual harassment charges (IPC Section 354 A) against the driver based on the mayor’s complaint that he made indecent gestures at her.
However, they refused to register the driver’s complaint against obstructing the bus and causing inconvenience to the passengers.
A police source said the trip was cancelled after the driver had to be detained for committing an offence, and hence, a case cannot be registered against the mayor and her family. “It was the driver who committed an offence, making remarks against the women including the mayor. So he was picked up by the cops and the remainder of the bus service had to be truncated. It was not the act of the mayor that culminated in the cancellation of the trip. So, there won’t be any case against the mayor,” the source said.
When the issue sparked a controversy and the CCTV footage showed the mayor’s private car parked on the zebra crossing, the police finally acknowledged Yedu’s complaint. On Monday, the police gave him a receipt on his complaint.
“I am not associated with any trade union but I am getting support from a few drivers’ unions. At the same time, I am worried about paying my son’s school fee,” Yedu said.
The mayor, however, continued her offensive against the bus driver, saying they reacted against him as he had humiliated womanhood. “It shouldn’t be viewed as a matter that arose because he didn’t give space to overtake the bus. He tried to ram the car with the bus, and while overtaking, he showed sexually loaded gestures at the women including myself,” Arya said.
The police have recorded the statements of the mayor and some of the bus passengers. Further, it was pointed out that Yedu had a history of involvement in such cases.
Yedu said he had a case against him for outraging the modesty of women but claimed he was acquitted by the court as it was a fabricated one.