In a shocking incident late Sunday night, a private ambulance driver transporting a critically ill five-month-old infant to Vani Vilas Hospital was assaulted near the Nelamangala toll plaza in Bengaluru. The perpetrators, allegedly intoxicated, pursued the ambulance for several kilometers before cornering it at the toll plaza, as reported by India Today.
Despite the urgency of the medical situation, the attackers, unmoved by the pleas of the child’s parents, brutally assaulted the ambulance driver, identified as John, in full view of police officers stationed at the plaza. A video of the incident, shared widely on social media, depicts the assailants aggressively attacking John while ignoring desperate appeals for mercy.
John later recounted that the attackers appeared to be under the influence of alcohol during the assault. Swift police intervention eventually stopped the violence, allowing the ambulance to proceed to the hospital and ensuring the safety of its occupants.
Bengaluru Rural SP Mallikarjun Baldandi confirmed the incident, stating, “An ambulance driver was driving his vehicle fast and overtook an Innova car. The people in the Innova opposed him overtaking the vehicle. Near the Nelamangala toll, people in Innova took over the ambulance and assaulted the driver. We have registered an FIR and are investigating further. We will find in inquiry if they were inebriated when they were driving the vehicle.”
The opposition BJP in the state criticized the authorities over the incident, highlighting it as an example of rampant anarchy and lawlessness. The Karnataka unit of the BJP tweeted, “The rampage of thugs, shielding of influencers for extortion, unprovoked murders, all these are common in the @INCKarnataka regime. Even if you drive drunk in broad daylight on the roads of the state, the police will not stop you! The hooligans who beat up the driver while blocking the ambulance itself shows how anarchy is rampant.”
They further questioned the state’s Home Minister, tweeting, “Home Minister @DrParameshwara, do you even remember that you are the home minister of the state? So far your role was limited to making a statement. Even that seems to have stopped now. #CongressFailsKarnataka.”