A video of a 25-year-old man being brutally beaten up by vendors at the Raipur railway station for allegedly stealing a packet of biscuits went viral on Friday.
The video also shows two women Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel watching the incident as mute spectators.
Mayank Tiwari was caught by the vendors of Sunshine Caterers Pvt Ltd while trying to steal a packet of biscuits to quell his hunger.
Soon after, they took it upon themselves to punish him for his indiscretion and rained blows on the poor man.
The video, recorded by a passenger, showed the vendors dragging him across the platform.
The person recording the incident questioned the attackers, one of whom said: “This guy is a thief.”
Despite the presence of numerous passengers and Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel, no one came forward to stop the assault.
The vendors continued to thrash the youth with sticks, dragging him from one platform to another.
Raipur Railway Station GRP in-charge L.S. Rajput said vendors Ankit Mishra, Ashutosh Shukla, Sunil Shukla and Basant Pradhan were arrested for thrashing and threatening to kill the man. A court sent them to prison.
The railway authorities sealed three stalls of the Sunshine Caterers Pvt Ltd run by these accused vendors.
Meanwhile, the RPF suspended Assistant Sub-Inspector and two women constables for negligence of duty.
