A railway official threatened to assault mentally challenged children and their caretakers who visited Gollahalli railway station to help the children familiarise with the public space and improve social interaction.
A video of the station manager’s threat, which went viral, revealed discrimination against people with disability.
NGO Snehadhara Foundation, which takes care of mentally challenged individuals, organised the trip to Gollahalli with nine mentally challenged children and 13 others. NGO founder Geetanjali Sarangan was shocked when a station official asked her to gather the children and leave as she went to enquire why they were denied platform tickets.
In the video, the station manager says the foundation requires permission from the Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) to visit the platform. He threatened to assault the group when Geetanjali asked what was the need for the DRM’s letter to buy platform tickets and enter a public space.
“We will call the RPF (railway protection force), that’s all. You will be beaten,” an official is seen threatening Geetanjali.
The officer’s tone softens after a member of Geetanjali’s team begins to shoot the video, which also shows a young official trying to calm down the situation by talking politely. “If it was a matter of safety, we would have explained that each of the nine inmates is accompanied by a caretaker. Moreover, all they did was stand far away and enjoy the trains passing through the station. It’s a shame that we had to fight and undergo this unpleasant experience just to show two trains to the children,” Geetanjali said.
DRM Shyam Singh was not available for comment.
DH reached out to Chief Public Relations Officer, South Western Railway, Aneesh Hegde, who said he will look into the issue.