The Trains and the Witches

This is something I didnt want to post on the Bombay Diva blog although I should as it's more relevant there but didnt because it's not Bombay's fault that some people behave like this. The morning rush in the trains - the most efficient transport system in Bombay - makes women, especially, turn into broom-flying witches who glare at and attack anyone who gets in their way.

Yesterday, my husband came home from work with a story. It was after 10 am. There was heavy human traffic on the station platforms where trains stop for a brief 2 minutes before proceeding to their destination and other stations scheduled for a stop. A woman's handbag fell in the gap under the train and the platform and got stuck. My husband's colleague stopped to help her yank the bag out before the train left, blocking the people behind her. Two girls mauled her from behind and left bleeding scratch marks on her wrists and arms. Even after she got in the train and yelled at them, they were "shocked" at her language and asked her what social background she came from. She incredulously retorted with the same question, what social background do you guys belong to that do this to other people and she showed them the visibly bleeding marks.

Once she got into the office she was crying at the agony she had to undergo with the wounds and the mental pain of hearing the two women openly complain about her to each other. She found more scratch marks all along her back. She needed tetanus injections because the doctor told her that pus was forming around those scratches.

I dont know what's become to make people so murderous during the morning rush hour. Even regularly travelling people have to bear the brunt of such attacks: verbal or physical. It used to be a different place a few years ago and now it's come to this. This wasnt even in the Second Class with a whole section of people who might come down to cat fights. The First Class that usually stands aside and gives way to people alighting from trains (not ever seen in the Second class rush where people just stand dumbly in your way not caring that you need to get down at a particular station) had come to such blows.

I can only hope that this was one stray incident and those two women no matter how they were inconvenienced will not choose to retaliate in this way. They could very easily be in the same position and I hope that no one would choose to physically assault them.