Mumbai: Horse carriage rider abducts constable at Marine Drive

A horse carriage rider ‘abducting' a cop on duty while the latter is calling out for help might seem like a scene straight from a Hindi comic caper, but this incident actually occurred at Marine Drive. Chetan Sharma, a volunteer of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), called the local police after he saw two illegal horse carriages in the area. It might be recalled that in recent years, PETA has been actively working to seek a ban on horse carriages in Mumbai as they are not only an act of cruelty against the animals but also pose a traffic risk to citizens.

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While one of the carriages managed to escape before the police could reach the spot, a constable got into the second carriage and instructed the rider to go to the Marine Drive police station. Sharma recounted, "The rider disregarded the cop's instruction and instead drove off with him. It was extremely scary. We were very worried about the constable. He was taken to a desolate area. The police immediately sent a few vans and managed to locate the constable. If a cop is unsafe, what will happen to the common man?"

The rider has been identified as one Salman and an FIR has been filed against him under section 353 of the Indian Penal Code, a copy of which is available with SUNDAY MiD DAY. u00a0