A Delhi-based travel agent and vlogger has claimed that an "RPF officer" molested him while he was travelling from Guwahati to Rangapara North Junction in Assam on Donyi Polo Express train's sleeper coach. The incident happened on April 25 and the matter came to light after Deepak Samal spoke about the incident on a video on Instagram.
Speaking to Moneycontrol about the incident, the 30-year-old resident of Rohini said, "It happened in the middle of the night. I was sleeping on the side lower aisle berth when somebody flashed a torch on my face. I woke up to see a muscular man in a uniform peering down at me, and I thought he was an RPF officer conducting a routine check. He asked me a few questions about who I am, what I do for a living, and where I was going. I was surprised by the incident but I thought those were routine questions."
Soon after, another officer in uniform passed by and Samal asked him if the station was approaching. The officer, whom the vlogger described as "bulky and muscular" proceeded to sit on Samal's berth. "I had placed my backpack on the berth so there was very little space left, but he proceeded to sit by my legs. I thought he was tired and because he was an officer, I did not give it much thought and went back to sleep," he told the publication.
But Samal woke up again after he felt someone elbow his private parts. "It was the RPF officer. Confused and disoriented, I thought maybe he did it by mistake, and I tried to go back to sleep."
Soon after, however, Samal felt someone grab his private parts. He woke up with a start to see the same officer. "What do you think you are doing?" he shouted, to which he claims the man in uniform said "time-pass" before leaving the coach swiftly.
"At that point, I was hurt and shocked and wasn't sure of what to do. My station Rangapara was also about to arrive in some time. I got off the train and shot the video where I spoke about the incident but did not share it immediately," Samal told Moneycontrol. When asked if he considered filing a complaint at Rangapara station, he said that he did give it a thought but decided against it because he had a long journey ahead of him and could not afford to be delayed.
"But I shared the video on Instagram after a few days and so many people have reached out to me with similar experiences," he said.
Samal has since filed a complaint with Railway Madad -- Indian Railway's official grievance redressal mechanism. While he awaits an investigation into the matter by the concerned authorities, the vlogger said he is aware of certain shortcomings that may affect the probe. The first was his inability to correctly identify whether it was an RPF officer or a home guard. He also could not notice the alleged perpetrator's face or name tag.
"I wear high-powered glasses, and at the time of the incident, I was fresh out of sleep so I was both drowsy, I was not wearing my spectacles and the coach was dark so I could not see the man's face properly," he told Moneycontrol. "Moreover, as an average railway passenger, how are we expected to differentiate between RPF officers and home guards? We generally assume that RPF officers patrol the trains at night," Samal said.
Reacting to the incident, the CPRO of the Northeast Frontier Railway, Sabyasachi De told Moneycontrol that the authorities are currently investigating the case and since it was reported a few days after the incident, the probe is likely to take some time. "I urge passengers to report any grievance they experience immediately using the Railway Madad app and it will be investigated immediately," he said. "I also laud Samal for coming forward and filing the complaint. It will take some time for the authorities to look into the matter since it has already been more than a week since the incident but action will be taken."
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