This paper recently highlighted yet another instance of bullying on the local train, when an unruly group of commuters tried to force a senior citizen to give up her window seat, and then turned on a fellow commuter who tried to intervene, pushing him out of the train.

Luckily, there was no serious injury, but we have witnessed numerous instances in the past where people have lost limbs and even their life after being pushed off of a train following such arguments. This incident has to be seen in the larger context of train bullying. Another term for this is train terror. There are daily commuters who form cliques or groups and then terrify others for their favourite spots in the coach, sometimes not even allowing others to board the compartment. The train bullies have strength in numbers, and they pick on solo travellers, especially those who are not versed with the ‘pecking order’ on the train.