Kerala HRC orders probe on bus driver complaint against Thiruvananthapuram mayor

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala Human Rights Commission (HRC) on Thursday ordered a probe into a complaint by the driver of the KSRTC bus who had been accused by city Mayor Arya Rajendran of making sexually suggestive gestures towards her and her sister-in-law a few days ago.

Acting Chairperson of the Commission and Judicial Member K Baijunath directed the Thiruvananthapuram City Police Commissioner and the Managing Director of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) to conduct an investigation and submit a report within a week.

The complainant driver, L H Yedu, had alleged that Mayor Rajendran and her family members prevented him from discharging his duty on April 27 by blocking the bus with their private vehicle.

He also alleged that the SHO of Cantonment police station took no action when a complaint in this regard was lodged by him.

In his complaint against Rajendran, her MLA husband and three others, the driver had alleged that they disrupted the bus journey, shouted obscenities against him and tried to make the passengers deboard the bus.

The driver also sought that the Cantonment SHO be removed from the investigation and the probe be carried out by another agency.

Last Saturday night, the mayor and her family had got into a heated argument with the KSRTC bus driver after allegedly blocking the vehicle at Palayam junction.

Rajendran claimed the KSRTC bus was not blocked, but CCTV visuals aired by news channels showed her private car parked across the zebra line on the road.

She had said that she spoke to the driver while the bus was stopped at the red signal area to raise her protest against his alleged sexually suggestive gestures towards her and her sister-in-law.

The driver, who was booked in connection with the incident, has refuted the allegations.