In a shocking incident, a woman passenger had to jump off a moving train to escape from an assault attempt. She has sustained injuries to her head and is undergoing treatment in a hospital in Kochi. This incident throws light on the safety of women passengers in means of public transport.
According to her husband, Rahul Sadanandan, “My wife has been shifted from the ICU to a room in the hospital, but she is yet to recover from trauma. She still fears the assailant would come to the hospital and attack her. She is really frightened.”
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As per news sources, the 31-year-old woman was traveling to work in Guruvayur-Punalur Express when the incident occurred. She had boarded the train from Mulanthuruthy station in Ernakulam district. When the train started from the station, the accused, Bijukuttan, entered and shut the compartment doors. She was all alone in the compartment when the accused had attempted to rape her as well as snatch her ornaments and threatened her with a screwdriver.
After threatening her, the accused tried to drag her into the toilet when she managed to escape his tight grip. She immediately opened the doors of the compartment and jumped off the train near Piravom. The public who saw this happen immediately took her to the nearest hospital.
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Bijukuttan, who has a criminal record for snatching gold ornaments, is currently absconding but the Railway Protection Force is on the lookout for him. The case has been registered under Indian Penal Code Section 394 – Committing or in attempting to commit robbery, and voluntarily causes hurt, Section 307 – Attempting to murder, Section 376 – Committing rape, and Section 511 – Attempting to commit offences.
