The contract carriage operator Suresh Kallada, which is drawing brickbats after a video of the alleged assault of passengers by its staff went viral in the social media, has taken to the social media to clarify its position.
The post said that the three passengers mentioned in the viral video and television channels had assaulted one of its crew members aged above 50 years who remains hospitalised in Haripad with multiple stitches.
“Secondly, after the substitute bus had reached Vytilla on the way to Bengaluru, the same passengers had got off the bus and barged into our office and assaulted the night duty staff for no fault of his. We have intimated both the assaults on our staff at the respective police stations and are yet to receive any updates on the same,” the post said.
‘Reactive assault’
The post described the violence by its staff as “a reactive assault than a proactive one” and said that it was ‘regrettable.’
“We assure that strict action shall be initiated against those responsible for the assault on the passengers. In the meanwhile, we have suspended the employees concerned pending investigation,” the post said.