16-Year-Old Assaulted By Driver, Conductor In Moving Bus For 47 Km In Delhi, Nirbhaya Memories Return

A 16-year-old Class 11 student was allegedly gang-raped inside a moving sleeper bus by its driver and conductor after she boarded the vehicle at Greater Noida’s Pari Chowk on August 4, in an incident that has brought back memories of the 2012 Nirbhaya case. The girl, who lives with her family in a village in Mainpuri district, had left home after her mother scolded her for not studying and was travelling to Noida Sector 63 to meet her cousin. Delhi Police have arrested the two accused, identified as driver Kuldeep and conductor Sandeep, and seized the bus.

The teenager told police that she had left home without informing anyone on August 4, a day after being scolded. While travelling towards Noida, she got off at Pari Chowk by mistake because of heavy rain and darkness. She then stopped another bus and asked where it was going. The conductor told her that it was headed for Noida Sector 63. With no passengers inside, she boarded the vehicle. Soon after the bus started moving, she alleged that the conductor began making obscene advances towards her before he and the driver assaulted her. The two men allegedly threatened to kill her if she resisted.

Delhi route exposed gaps in night-time bus checks

Accoridng to reports, the bus travelled about 47 kilometres from Pari Chowk to Kashmiri Gate with its windows covered by heavy curtains. According to the report, the curtains prevented people outside from seeing what was happening inside. The vehicle was not stopped at any police check along the route, despite travelling through the Noida-Delhi border, major intersections, an expressway and Ring Road. Police officials said barricades on the route often cause traffic jams, but questions have been raised over why an apparently empty bus moving at night did not attract attention.

Police said the bus had earlier developed a technical fault and Kuldeep and Sandeep had taken it to a workshop in Surajpur, Greater Noida. After repairs, they were driving the empty bus back to a parking lot in Timarpur, North Delhi. Investigators said the two men saw the girl standing alone at Pari Chowk and allegedly lured her onto the bus on the pretext of dropping her at Sector 63. After the assault, they abandoned her late at night on Ring Road near the Kashmiri Gate bus station and continued towards Timarpur.

Delhi police trace accused through footage

Reportedly, after being dropped off, the girl approached Kashmiri Gate police and reported the incident. Police arranged her medical examination and recorded her statement. An FIR was registered under sections relating to gang rape, kidnapping and assault. A team formed under Kotwali ACP Shankar Banerjee used footage to trace the suspects and arrested Kuldeep and Sandeep from the Timarpur parking lot.

The victim’s family was called to Delhi late at night. Female police officers counselled the teenager before she was safely handed back to her family after the formalities. Police also conducted potency tests on both accused. A forensic team collected the girl’s hair and other biological evidence from the bus. These samples will be matched with her blood samples to build forensic evidence for the case.

Delhi case raises questions over safety rules

The incident has also raised questions about whether safety measures introduced after the Nirbhaya case are being properly enforced. Commercial buses are required to have verified drivers and conductors, police verification and nameplates on uniforms. Yet private buses can operate at night without official oversight or regular route logs.

Dark curtains, which block vision, are not allowed according to Supreme Court guidelines and the Motor Vehicles Rules, but the bus used had dark curtains that blocked the view of the assault that took place. Commercial passenger buses are also supposed to have live VLTs as well as panic buttons connected to the control room. No emergency call was raised at any point in time in the bus. CCTV cameras are supposed to be installed in commercial transport for their security, but there was no working surveillance inside the bus.

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