The ordeal endured by a group of women on the Mysore-Chennai Kaveri Express (16022) raises worrying concerns regarding women’s safety on the Indian Railways. On November 24, Tamil Nadu Congress Committee OBC wing general secretary Dhivya Marunthiah and four others boarded their train only to find at least ten men without reserved tickets occupying their seats. While a few of them men left the coupe after being asked to, several of them not only refused, but also verbally abused and threatened Dhivya, she told TNM. Further, the Railway Police Force (RPF) had been of no help, despite safety concerns to women passengers she alleges.
Dhivya stated that she and her co-passengers boarded the S1 compartment in Mysore at approximately 9:30 PM. About six of the ticketless passengers refused to leave, insisting they would remain until the train reached Mandya. During the ensuing argument, one of the men made a threatening phone call seeking "backup" at the next station.
Following this, a male passenger attempted to intervene but was also verbally abused. At around 10:10 PM, Dhivya pulled the emergency chain. However, the responding police official refused to intervene. In a video shared with TNM, an official in what appears to be an RPF uniform can be seen shouting "I can't do anything" before walking away. Dhivya alleges that the Train Ticket Examiner (TTE) failed to appear throughout the incident, which lasted for at least an hour and a half.
Dhivya added that attempts to get help through various helplines proved futile. Calls to 139 (Railways helpline), 1800 111 322 (rail passenger safety helpline), and others only resulted in generic responses. She alleges that Karnataka police officials who responded to her calls were unhelpful. They allegedly attempted to record their conversation with her without consent and dismissed her objections. Further, when the train stopped at a station, around ten men summoned by one of the ticketless travellers heckled Dhivya and her co-passengers through the windows, she said, even in the presence of the police.
"The ticketless men also tried to create a language issue between Tamil and Kannada speakers. But this is not about linguistic politics; it's about women's safety. Other passengers told me that such incidents occur almost every day. A similar incident took place in a neighboring compartment as well. This affects all women, regardless of language. Such incidents highlight the negligence of the Indian Railways," Dhivya told TNM.
Dhivya, who posted about the incident on X (formerly Twitter) multiple times from the train, pointed out that despite her considerable social media reach, no help came from the RPF, and no official from Indian Railways has contacted her even now. "This raises questions about the safety measures for women who regularly travel on this line. Anything could have happened to us that night. But no RPF or Railways official took our situation seriously. The incident ended only after the ticketless men deboarded at Bengaluru around 12:30 AM. But passengers told me that such incidents are commonplace on this line, particularly between Mysore and Bengaluru."