These days, practically every political rally is attended by lakhs of workers and each rally is bigger than the other. The show of strength no longer depends on the party’s political ideology but is directly connected to its cash reserves and caste equations. Earlier, the attendance at a rally determined the party’s popularity. These days, rallyists are professionals who are available to all parties at a price — usually three to four times their daily wage. Besides the obvious monetary benefit, these villagers also look forward to a chance to visit the cities, especially since the package deal includes free transport and food. The result: uncontrollable crowds which are a nightmare for both the common man and the Railways. The city grinds to a halt, and the tension remains till the rally ends. In fact, the end of a rally is the worst part as the rallyists, all fired up by the speeches of their leaders, let out their steam on railway property. Invariably their rowdiness leads to violence and stampede, even resulting in some deaths. Take the Dhikkar rally on September 28, addressed by Mayawati and L.K. Advani, when 12 BSP workers died in a stampede at the Lucknow Railway Station. After the deaths, I expected the Deputy Prime Minister and the Chief Minister to do some introspection and initiate proposals to regulate rallies. But it looks like the lost of human lives is a non-issue for them, only to be compensated for by some monetary aid from the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund. Such incidents cannot be permitted to be pushed under the carpet. We must access the ground realities and find a solution to these disruptions so that precious human lives are not lost and local residents are not subjected to inconvenience. Mayawati’s rally was held to impress Advani about her strength in UP. She reacted to the deaths by blaming the Railways for shifting the platform for arrival of incoming trains. She also complained that chartered trains were not made available for her party workers. So the Railway Ministry ordered an investigation. Those attending the rallies look forward to a chance to visit the cities, especially since the deal includes free transport, food. The result: uncontrollable crowds and a nightmare for both the common man and the Railways. And sometimes, as happened in Lucknow, violence and stampedes follow Confining itself to the above issues, the inquiry report exonerated Railway officials. But the DRM, Lucknow was shunted out. As for the chartered trains, it was mentioned that although the Lucknow District Magistrate had requisitioned nine trains, no money was deposited for the same. How could a district magistrate act as a manager of a political party? The inquiry should have looked deeper. It should have recommended action against the offenders. The Railways should have filed cases against the ruling party leaders and workers for trespassing and travelling without tickets. But nothing happened. Instead, the families of the dead were given Rs 50,000 each from the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund, obviously legitimising their otherwise illegal offence of trespassing. All the one-and-half lakh rallyists were guilty of violating the provisions of the Railway Act, 1989 and should have been booked under Section 147 for trespassing and refusing to desist. Those who damaged Railway property, should have been charged under Section 150 and 151, while others who entered reserved compartments ought to have been booked under Section 155. In fact, the law provides for arrest and prosecution of ticketless travellers. All the rallyists were offenders under Section 55 and 137 of the Act. Neither the BSP or the BJP can plead that their cadre were travelling with tickets. Records reveal that the ticket sales were lower than average on September 28. The Lucknow Railway Station sold 14,825 and 16,948 train tickets on September 28 and 29, much lower than the average daily sale of 28,113 tickets from September 25 to 27. Even the sale of platform tickets registered a low: 1091 were sold as against the average of 2,359. Not only were the rallyists travelling without tickets, their rowdiness forced 1432 ticket-holders to refund their tickets worth Rs 4,13,244, causing a further loss to the Railways. The Railways is the worst sufferer of this form of political frenzy. So why does it remain a mute spectator, although it is armed with enough legal safeguards and even has its own police force to deal with such situations. Is it because the department’s officers are incapable of fighting the wrongs committed by their political bosses, or do they look forward to damage to railway property since they can then float new tenders for repairs? Does the Railways realise that it has allowed itself to be a soft target for the rallyists who are let off for the same offences that a common man is fined, detained and even imprisoned for? Does the Railways realise that this encourages the rallyists to loot shops, enter cinema halls without tickets and create law and order problems? Why doesn’t the Railways act although it is armed with enough legal safeguards? Is it because the department’s officers are incapable of fighting the wrongs committed by their political bosses, or do they look forward to damage to property since they can then float new tenders for repairs? It’s still not too late. The Railways can put an end to this nonsense, irrespective of the strength of the offenders. The Railway Police, armed with the powers to arrest trespassers and ticketless travellers even without warrants, should wait for the rush to clear and arrest the last few hundred or thousand rallyists. Once this is done, the daily wagers will be more cautious about the paid holiday. The misuse of the Railways has always been there — whether it was the Emergency when Youth Congress workers chanted pro-Sanjay Gandhi slogans, or the 1977 Janata Party rally at Ramlila Maidan. No Delhiite can forget Mahinder Singh Tikait’s Kisan Rally during the ’80s when about five lakh men descended on the India Gate lawns. Five of the rallyists even lost their lives in the ensuing melee. Whether we like it or not, rallies are here to stay. And the number is likely to increase in this current political scenario of coalition politics. But surely, the parties can discipline and regulate their rallies, if not for the common man then at least for their own workers. It is also time for the government to protect the interest of the Railways and the travellers. For this, it has to set up some guidelines: • When a party seeks permission from the district administration for a rally, it should sign a bond undertaking to compensate all losses that may be caused by rallyists; • The party must inform the administration about how many workers are expected and the mode of transport. It also must produce documentary evidence to support its contention; • The rally should be permitted to be held in a suburb so that normal life is not disturbed; • Special trains must be arranged, from the suburbs if possible, so that the main station is not affected; • Any rallyist found to be trespassing upon railway property of travelling without tickets must be dealt with as per law; • Permission for the rally should only be granted after the district magistrate is satisfied with the arrangements. Thereafter, the party must be held accountable, even if the rally is organised by the Prime Minister’s or Chief Minister’s party; • If any party penalised for an offence committed by its rallyists refuses to compensate for the damages, it should not be allowed to hold rallies in future; I sincerely hope that those in power will wake up to the situation and ensure that rallies are peaceful and regulated in future. I pray that the administration does not fail us again. But if it does, the judiciary should frame guidelines to discipline political rallies in the larger interest of the public. (V M Singh is a former MLA from Uttar Pradesh and a human rights activist)
