3,500 men evicted from women’s coach in 2014

The large, very pink ‘women only’ stickers on the platforms, and the announcements that the first compartment of the Metro is reserved for women, are often not enough to deter some stubborn men from trying to find space in the women’s coach of the Delhi Metro trains.
And no one knows this better than the Central Industrial Security Force (Metro), which has a special team that travels in the ladies’ coach in civvies to check these trespassers.According to the data provided by the CISF, this year, 3,500 men have been fined so far for travelling in the ladies’ coach, which is considerably less than the numbers in previous years (2012 and 2013).
“This year, so far, we have caught 3,500 guys travelling in the ladies’ compartment of the Metro. They are handed over to the station control room, which fines them. This data doesn’t include those who say they are doing so for the first time or those who weren’t aware of the rule. It includes mainly those who get into arguments and misbehave with the officers when caught. In fact, now, the number of incidents has reduced because our Special Team patrols daily in the morning and evening,” says the spokesperson of the CISF.
About 50 men removed from women’s coach daily
Arvind Ranjan, director general, CISF, says, “Around 50 men are removed from the ladies’ coach every day. It is not that all of them are there with the intention to harass women – maybe they just find a seat there. If they listen to us and quietly move to the general compartment, then they are allowed to go, but if they resist, they are taken to the station control room and fined. If they do anything more serious, like molest women, then we hand them over to police.”
Busy Metro stations see more such incidents
According to a CISF officer at Rajiv Chowk Metro station, “Mostly, men travelling in the women-only coach are caught at the busier Metro stations like INA, Rajiv Chowk, Kashmere Gate, Chandni Chowk etc. It is usually between 8pm and 10pm or in the day’s last Metro that we find such men. In the morning, we don’t usually see men in the pink coach. Agar koi milte hain bhi subah mein, toh yeh officegoers hote hain jo jaldi mein first coach mein chale aate hain, so that they don’t miss the Metro. Aison ko bolna bhi nahi padta – khud hi general coach mein chale jaate hain. The actual challenge is to deal with those who intentionally get into the ladies’ coach. They first make excuses, then start arguing – when a fine of `250 is imposed on them, only then do they become a little contrite.”
Pehli baar tha, jaane do please
Everybody tries to use the first time excuse, says Renuka Singh*, a CISF officer. She says, “Whenever a guy is caught sitting in the ladies’ coach, the first thing he says is, ‘Metro mein pehli baar jaa raha hoon, pata nahi tha.’ It has become a cliche now. Despite the pink ‘women only’ sign and despite the announcement, they fail to get it. We are not trainees – we can’t be fooled like that. We have dealt with so many people that we can immediately tell if the person is lying or not.”
I was just charging my mobile
According to Siddharth Mehta*, a CISF officer, the guys standing just next to the ladies’ coach tend to take up the seats in that coach. “Recently, I caught a guy sitting in the ladies’ coach. I asked him to move to the next compartment, and he said he was there just to charge his mobile, as if the general compartment doesn’t have a charging point. Who are they trying to fool? I told him that if he didn’t move to the next compartment immediately, he’d have to pay a fine of `250 and deboard the Metro. He had to leave the coach,” says Mehta*.
Somebody pushed me
Another very common excuse that men found in the women’s coach make is that it wasn’t their fault but of the crowd’s, which ‘pushes’ them into the pink coach, says Anil Verma*, a CISF officer. He says, “Hasi toh tab aati hai jab yeh masoom sa chehra bana ke kehte hain ki peechhe se kisi ne dhakka de diya tha, isiliye women’s coach mein aa gaye. Aur jab peechhe dekho toh koi hota bhi nahi. Yaar, agar bahana hi banana hai, toh kuch dhang ka soch lo.”
Main uth jaunga agar koi female aayi toh
The Metro sees a comparatively less crowded women’s coach late at night. According to Shilpa Kumar*, a CISF officer who patrols in civvies, “At night, the ladies’ coach has little occupancy, while the general coach is crowded as usual. Men, therefore, sit down there, thinking koi female toh aayegi nahi. But the ladies’ only coach is only for women and the DMRC also charges a fine if a man is caught in this coach. Seat khaali ho, phir bhi aap nahi baith sakte kyunki isse baaki females uncomfortable ya unsafe feel kar sakti hain. Once, I asked a guy to get out of the ladies’ coach. Because I was in civvies, he thought I was one of the commuters, and started arguing with me. He pointed towards other vacant seats and said, ‘Agar aapko baithna hai toh wahan chale jao, itni saari jagah toh hai baithne ke liye.’ When I introduced myself, he requested me to sit there and said he would immediately change compartments the moment a girl came, or if there were complaints of others feeling uncomfortable. Aap kitne bhi tired ho, aap kitne bhi shareef ho, hum rule ke against kaam nahi kar sakte hain. I had to force him out of the women’s coach.”
My friend is not well, so I’m here with her
Sometimes, even females help their male friends get seats in the women’s coach. They not only get them seats, but when asked, they also support them, says Priya Kumar*, a CISF officer. “Once, a guy was sitting with a girl in the pink coach. I asked the guy if he was aware of the rules. He said his friend was not well and he could not leave her alone, therefore he was sitting with her in the women’s coach.
At this, the girl, who was looking perfectly okay, supported him and said she asked him to sit with her. I told them that if she was so ill, she should take a cab and go home instead of breaking the rules. I had to threaten them with the fine, only then did they leave the women’s coach and go to the general one,” she explains.