MUMBAI: A sessions court on Monday convicted a 40-year-old man for stabbing a woman aboard a
local train while attempting to rob her in April last year. Judge U B Hejib sentenced the accused
Chandrakant Vaidya to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment. Victim Swati Karnalkar’s unwavering testimony and identification of the accused in court proved to be the clinching evidence.
Swati, who works at an Andheri lab, told TOI, “Although I am satisfied that the accused has been convicted, I feel the sentence should be harsher.
Merely sentencing him for 10 years will not suffice.” Public prosecutor Shankar Erande examined five witnesses, including Swati and the policemen who nabbed the accused at
Marine Lines station.
Swati recalled that April 19, 2013 was Ram Navami and hence a public holiday, but she was working. On her way back to her
Charni Road residence, she took a fast train from Andheri but as it did not stop at Charni Road, she disembarked at Churchgate. At 7.30pm, she boarded a slow train from Churchgate to reach Charni Road, two stations later. “I was alone in the first class compartment. The accused got in at Churchgate itself but I did not notice him as I was talking on the phone,” Swati said. She further said Vaidya suddenly wielded a knife and threatened her. “He told me he would kill me if I didn’t give him my phone and cash. When I began to scream for help, he stabbed me just above my stomach,” she added.
Swati said despite pulling the chain, the train did not halt. “This was actually a good thing as if the train had halted between stations, he would have jumped off and got away.” She said when the train stopped at Marine Lines, the next station, Vaidya got off and began to flee, but by then women in the second class compartment had heard her screams. “The cops at the station were alerted as the women kept screaming ‘chor, chor’,” she added. After a chase, Vaidya was finally nabbed.
Swati says unaware that she was bleeding, she beat up Vaidya in anger after he was arrested. “After a week’s rest, I travelled by train again and did not feel afraid at all. I wanted to pursue this matter not for any compensation, but for the safety of all women commuters. The railways and the state need to do something concrete about our protection. There were a spate of similar incidents even after this. I just want them to stop,” Swati said.