Nigerian slashes auto driver’s hand

The incident occurred near Malviya Nagar after a dispute over fare on Friday evening, when most three- wheelers were on strike

Nigerian slashes auto driver's hand

The incident occurred near Malviya Nagar after a dispute over fare on Friday evening, when most three- wheelers were on strike

Going by the law of averages, almost every Delhiite has had a scrap with an auto rickshaw driver at some point. On Friday evening, a Nigerian national took matters a few steps further. He attacked and wounded a driver with a cleaver, which was preceded by an altercation over fare.

Narrow escape: The auto rickshaw driver (in grey T-shirt) at the
incident spot. Pic/Mid Day

The incident occurred on Friday, when three-wheeler drivers were on strike, protesting the government's order on mandatory installation of Global Positioning System (GPS). The Nigerian, residing at Khirki Extension at Malviya Nagar had to go to Hauz Khas Metro station. After a little wait he saw an auto coming towards him from one of the by-lanes. Trying to cash in on the situation, the driver asked for Rs 100 for a trip, which wouldn't cost more than Rs 30. The Nigerian started arguing with the driver. Seeing this, another auto driver standing nearby jumped in to mediate.

Unwanted help?
The Nigerian felt that the new entrant was trying to stop the other driver from going. Leaving the first one, he started fighting with this driver and a scuffle ensued. "I just came to persuade this auto driver to give the commuter a ride and charge reasonably. But due to the language barrier, the Nigerian thought I was stopping the other driver from plying. He punched me hard on my face and I retaliated. This continued for a few minutes," claimed Madan Mohan, the auto driver.

The Nigerian then took a cleaver from a nearby fruit vendor and attacked the driver, trying to hit him on his face. The blow landed on the driver's hand. "I was lucky. He attacked with full force, trying he hit me on my face but I jumped to the other side at the right time. The cleaver hit my hand injuring all my fingers. Meanwhile, the bystanders around me had vanished. I was left all alone to fight with the giant," added Mohan, who stays at Madangir in southeast Delhi.

The scuffle went on for about fifteen minutes. In the meantime, an onlooker had called the Police Control Room (PCR). Finally, the Nigerian threw away the cleaver and tried escaping from the site. "But the auto driver made sure that he didn't escape and was handed over to the police, when they arrived," said Ramendra, a vegetable vendor, witness to the entire incident.

Just a warning
A senior police official from Malviya Nagar police station said: "The matter was reported at Friday around 6 pm. The Nigerian was kept in custody for about three hours but the rickshaw driver didn't want to file a FIR against him. So we couldn't take any action. He was allowed to leave after a strong warning. The auto driver with whom the Nigerian was initially negotiating, fled seeing the situation turning ugly. The driver who got injured was taken to a local hospital and was discharged after proper treatment."

55,000
Number of registered auto rickshaws in Delhi

Stabbedu00a0to death
In an incident reported on March 16, a middle-aged auto rickshaw driver was stabbed to death by an unidentified man in central Delhi following an altercation after a woman passenger objected to his forcing himself into the three-wheeler in which she was travelling, police said on Wednesday. Prem Kumar Mathur (48) was stabbed in Kamla Market area at around 8:30 pm on Tuesday night after he made the man, who boarded the autorickshaw forcefully; deboard following the woman passenger's objection, a senior police official said. "The woman boarded Mathur's auto. Another man also then forced himself into the vehicle. The woman objected to this following which Mathur intervened and asked the man to get out his vehicle," the official said. An altercation ensued and the man flashed a razor used by barbers and slashed him several times.

Metro's gain
Delhi Metro saw a huge rush of commuters at some stations Friday evening due to the auto rickshaw strike in the national capital, leading to snags, minor delays and chaos with angry passengers losing their cool on a hot and humid day. "Managing the crowds was very difficult today (Friday). The numbers were overwhelming and many men walked into coaches reserved for women," a guard on duty at Rajiv Chowk Metro station, said. "Some trains where stopped for a few extra minutes at stations because of the huge rush and the commuters where crowding near the gate forcing themselves in," a commuter said.

Back on track
More than half of the city's 55,000 auto rickshaws which went on strike from Thursday midnight returned to the roads Saturday. Some auto unions had gone on strike demanding that the Delhi government pay for the Global Positioning System (GPS) devices to be installed in their vehicles. "The strike is off for now as we have been assured by the government that they will meet all our demands," Rakesh Sood, Delhi unit president of the Bharatiya Private Transport Mazdoor Mahasangh, said. Around 10 representatives of the union met Delhi's Transport minister Arvinder Singh Lovely on Friday evening for almost an hour, following which the strike was called off late Friday night, said Sood.

"Our demands of a welfare board for autorickshaw drivers, pension and healthcare schemes for our families have been met and the minister has promised that within four months, the board will be constructed," added Sood.
According to Sood, the unions have agreed to the government's plan of breaking down the installation cost of GPS devices - which comes to around Rs 7,500 - to 12 monthly instalments of Rs 625. "We have also been assured that those drivers who have the autos registered in their names will get further rebates... but that will take at least a month," added Sood. City residents faced a tough time on Friday due to the auto strike, with the spillover effect leading to increased rush in Metro and buses. The government wants autorickshaws to be fitted with GPS devices to enable a two-way communication system that will help check speeding, route deviation and ensure commuter safety.