'Thrashed with hockey stick, bleeds from ear': Asked to pay fine, Mumbai local TTE assaulted by passenger

MUMBAI: A 29-year-old train ticket examiner (TTE), Vijay Kumar Pandit, was assaulted with a hockey stick by a passenger for penalising him for travelling in first class with a second-class ticket on Western Railway's suburban train on Sept 19. The assault occurred at Nalasopara station on Friday morning, leaving Pandit with injuries below his ears.
In a statement to the police, Pandit recounted, "The passenger was travelling in the first-class compartment of a Virar local.As soon as he alighted from the train, I asked for his ticket. He presented a second-class ticket, for which I imposed a penalty of ₹345. However, he claimed to have only ₹210 on him, so I charged a reduced fine of ₹150."
After issuing the receipt, Pandit was on his way to his office when the passenger, who was later identified as Rahul, struck him from behind with a hockey stick, with one blow landing near his ear, causing bleeding. The attacker fled the scene immediately. Pandit's colleagues rushed to his aid and took him to a local hospital in Nalasopara for treatment.
The TTE has lodged an FIR against the accused at Vasai Govt Railway Police.
This incident marks the second attack on a TTE in recent months. On Aug 15, another TTE, Jasbir Singh, was assaulted by three passengers after he fined them for travelling in an AC coach with first-class tickets. A video of that incident shows a scuffle between Singh and the passengers, during which his shirt was torn.