Chennai: 4 students shatter MTC bus windshields with stones, search on
The police have registered a case and are browsing the CCTV footage to identify the students involved in the attack.
CHENNAI: The search for school students who shattered the windows of an MTC bus by hurling stones is under way by the police. The students had turned to this move because the driver and the conductor tried to stop them from travelling on the footboard.
According to the police, the MTC Pink bus route no 51T was operating from Madurapakkam to T Nagar via Tiruvanchery and Camp Road, carrying around 40 passengers, mostly women, on Tuesday. Around 5 pm at the Tiruvanchery bus stop, four school students boarded the bus but refused to go inside, despite repeated warnings from bus crew, and instead hung on the footboard while the vehicle was moving.
As the bus neared Mappedu Junction, four more students rode alongside the bus on bikes and held onto the handrails. They banged on the sides of the bus, causing panic among the passengers.
Soon, the driver, Selvam (40), stopped the bus at Indira Nagar bus stop in Selaiyur and attempted to catch the boys, but they fled. When the bus reached the Mahalakshmi Nagar signal, the same group returned on their bikes, blocked the bus, and threw stones at it, smashing the windshields.
The terrified passengers, especially women, jumped out of the bus for safety. The driver, Selvam, sustained minor injuries, and the students fled the scene on their bikes. The conductor quickly arranged for alternate transport, shifting the stranded passengers to another bus.
Selvam and the conductor then filed a complaint to the Selaiyur Police Station. The police have registered a case and are browsing the CCTV footage to identify the students involved in the attack.
According to MTC staff, such reckless behaviour by school students has become increasingly common on routes covering Camp Road, Selaiyur, Agaramthen, Mappedu, Tiruvanchery, and Madurapakkam.
"If a student hanging from a footboard falls and gets hurt, the driver or conductor is held responsible and faces police action. But the students who put everyone's life at risk are never punished," said a MTC worker.
