Rickshaw drivers and traffic wardens clashed near the Metro Bus station here on Friday leading to intervention of police to calm down the situation.
According to reports, a traffic warden challaned a rickshaw driver for parking on the wrong side that infuriated the driver. While verbal dual was going on, the traffic warden reportedly thrashed the driver. In the meantime, several rickshaw drivers gathered at the scene and brutally thrashed the traffic warden, who had to run for his life.
After the dual, the rickshaw drivers staged a protest against the behaviour of the traffic police and blocked major road for two hours causing traffic jams. Police reached the scene and tried to disperse the protesters but the agitating rickshaw drivers also attacked the Police staff by beating few cops. Reinforcements were called in and the demonstrators were dispersed.
Protestors alleged that the traffic wardens frequently treat them rudely as if the poverty stricken rickshaw drivers were not human and invent different excuses and arguments to challan them just to show performance to their bosses.
Common citizens on the occasion told this agency that while the rickshaw drivers were to be blamed for the unruly behaviour with the law enforcers but the traffic wardens were also no angles. They said that after the deployment of traffic wardens in place of traffic police, they had expected improvement in traffic situation as well as in the attitude of those in the force, but it was being noticed that the traffic wardens were also following the footsteps of their predecessors. Later police registered FIRs against the rickshaw drivers for taking law in their hands and beating uniformed personnel.
