Thiruvananthapuram: Four Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) employees who thrashed a 55-year-old man at the Kattakkada bus depot have been booked for non-bailable offences a day after the brawl, in which his teenage daughter too was caught up.
Police modified the bailable charge that they had slapped against the accused initially to a non-bailable one after the man's daughter, Reshma, deposed that she too was assaulted in the melee.
Charges, including IPC Section 509 (insulting the modesty of a woman), have been now registered against the culprits.
The employees — KSRTC Aryanad Unit station master A Mohammed Sherif, Kattakkada depot duty guard S R Suresh Kumar, conductor N Anil Kumar and Assistant CP Milan Dorich — were suspended from service by Transport Minster Antony Raju with immediate effect on Tuesday itself.
As per reports, Preman was assaulted for demanding a student's concession card for his daughter on Tuesday. His college-going daughter too was shoved by a few employees of the public transport carrier after a brief war of words erupted between them at the bus depot.
KSRTC Chairman and Managing Director Biju Prabhakar, earlier today, termed the incident deplorable and extremely unfortunate. "It is upsetting that such incidents tarnish the corporation's name when it is trying to tide over the crisis with corrective measures," he said.
He further apologised to the public for the treatment meted out to the girl and her father. "We will never protect such employees. The government has been asked to weed out such individuals. The Transport Minister is also of a similar view," he said.