Karnataka   

Fear grips taxi drivers Law & order

Fear psychosis gripped taxi drivers in Karnataka in the early eighties after unknown assailants murdered several of them and drove away with their Ambassador cars.

At least six taxi drivers from Mysore and Mangalore were murdered and their bodies were thrown into the Charmadi Ghats. Investigations revealed that Shyam, a young engineering diploma holder from Mysore who had also worked in the Department of Posts, was behind the serial murders.

He had allegedly poisoned or strangled the drivers of the taxis he had hired from Mysore and Mangalore and made away with the cars.

Nearly 20 years later, a similar fear grips taxi drivers in Bangalore. In the past three years, at least a dozen drivers employed with different travel agencies in the city have been murdered by those who had hired the vehicles. Incidentally, the culprits in all these cases had adopted Shyam’s modus operandi.

In the latest incident on January 7, Sardar (30), driver of a multi-utility vehicle (MUV), was hacked to death by a few men who had hired the vehicle from Welcome Travels in Gurappanapalya, off Bannerghatta Road.

The Hennur police, in whose limits Sardar’s body was found, are yet trace his killers who made away with the MUV worth Rs. 5 lakh.

Sardar’s murder comes close on the heels of the Rajarajeshwarinagar police arresting four youths who allegedly killed two taxi drivers and made away with a car and a van. Posing as tourists, the accused hired the vehicles from two car rental agencies in Chandra Layout and Basavanagudi police station limits and murdered the drivers.

According to the police, on October 6, 2007, the four youths hired a car from Sathya Tours and Travels in Chandra Layout to go to Male Mahadeshwara hills. On the way, they drugged the driver Harish (28). After he fell unconscious, they strangled him and threw his body into the Cauvery, near Belakavadi Bridge. They robbed him of cash and a mobile phone. They were using the car after changing its number plate.

In the other case, on August 8, 2007, the accused hired a van from Sri Vidya Travels in Basavanagudi. After forcing the driver Arun (23) to consume alcohol, they allegedly strangled him and threw his body at Shivanasamudra. Subsequently, they changed the number plate of the van and sold it.

To prevent such incidents, the police in October last had directed travel agencies in the city to get addresses and phone numbers of the people hiring vehicles. Besides, the agency staff had been told to call their drivers at regular intervals to find out their location, Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Gopal B. Hosur had said.

On the other, proprietors of travel agencies say that they do obtain the addresses and phone numbers of the customers. But those with criminal intentions provide false addresses and phone numbers, which cannot be cross checked immediately, says Ashok, who owns a travel agency in Basavanagudi.

Secondly, we can not insist on photo identity cards as several people who hire the vehicles would not be in possession of it. It could also result in the agency losing its customers, he says.

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