Railway police book bizman for handing over food to ‘kin & pals’

Coimbatore: The railway protection force (RPF) on Friday registered a case against a city-based businessman for buying food from outside and selling it inside the Coimbatore Junction railway station.
RPF registered a case under Section 144 of the Railways Act, 1989 that prohibits sale or canvassing of any product on railway property without permission, against Pappa Rao, a 43-year-old Kuniamuthur-based pipe manufacturer.
Rao, however said he was giving food packs to a group of Ayyappa devotees, comprised of his relatives and friends from his native place in Andhra Pradesh. He said he received no money in exchange for the food. “I had carried over 35 packs of food, plates and water bottles to platform 1 to hand over to my relatives and friends travelling from Palasa village near Srikakulam in AP to Kottayam in Gurudev Express. I have been doing it for four years. They did not pay me for the food. It was a favour,” he told TOI.
The SI who registered the case did not allow the passengers, who got off the train, to receive the packets, Rao said. “As a result, they missed dinner and starved till Saturday morning,” said a relative of Rao.
“Though we tried to explain about the relationship between the passengers and Rao and even told him that no money was exchanged, the SI insisted on filing a case,” said Rao's neighbour Thennilavan. “This is harassment.”
When contacted, Salem division railway authorities said that people can give food items, purchased or from home, to their relatives on rare occasions. “Regarding this case, we don’t believe that all the 33 people were relatives. Even assuming that money was not exchanged, we don’t want to encourage food from outside in such large quantities served to train passengers, because if one of them fall sick, people would blame the railway. We have extremely clean restaurants with exclusive veg dining if passengers require,” said the Salem railway division spokesperson.