COIMBATORE: The Coimbatore police on Saturday denied filing cases against an elderly woman who refused to travel on a government bus for free in Coimbatore. The video of the incident, allegedly shared by some AIADMK members, went viral on social media on Thursday.
District superintendent of police V Badri Narayanan told reporters on Saturday that no case has been registered against the woman over the video. It is fake news and we will probe how the false information is being spread, the SP said.
The police clarification came after a purported copy of the Daily Situation Report (DSR report given to media has details of cases booked by police the previous day) of Madukkarai police station shared on social media showed that four AIADMK workers and the woman have been booked under various sections of the IPC.
Meanwhile, late on Saturday, R Prithiviraj (40) of Madukkarai, an AIADMK member, was booked under IPC Sections 505 (i)(b) and 505 (ii) for spreading communal hatred through social media. As per the sources, Prithiviraj is believed to have first posted the video of the woman refusing a free bus ride.
Recently, minister K Ponmudi’s remarks about the free bus ride scheme for women sparked a controversy. A few days later, the video of the woman arguing with a conductor asking him to accept money for her bus ticket went viral on social media. Investigation revealed that it was recorded in Madukkarai area in Coimbatore and was allegedly shared on social media by an AIADMK member.
DMK’s Madukkarai town secretary N Ramu (56) on Thursday lodged a complaint with the Madukkarai police demanding action against those who allegedly made the woman to speak against the scheme, recorded it, and posted the video on social media to bring disrepute to the government.