Stone Thrown At Car in Trivandrum

[Ramon]

Even though the incident happened more than a couple of months back, I break into cold sweat each time I think of the incident ......how it could have all gone terribly wrong......
Ok the incident took place on Christmas day 2007. All in my family, my mom, dad, sis, brother inlaw, sisters daughter who was just a few months old and me packed into my sisters car (an Indica Turbo) and set out to Parassala (its a town on the border of Trivandrum and Kanyakumari Dist in TN). It was my niece's baptism on that day at my brother inlaws native church. After the function was over we started back at around 2:00pm as we had to attend another function in Trivandrum. I was doing the driving with my brother inlaw in the front with me, my sister just behind me with the baby in her arma and my mom & dad alongside her.
As it was Christmas day the normally crowded two lane highway was having very little traffic and we were making good time. We had passed Balaramapuram and were nearing Pallichal. I was doing around 70 and there were no vehicles in the opposite direction. I noticed two boys around 20 walking on the opposite side with a cycle between them. I saw the one nearer to the road pointing at our car. Suddenly I heard a loud thud. My first thought was that I had clipped something. I brought the car to a halt as safely and quickly as I could (there were other vehicles immediately behind me). Then my sister said thet the two boys had thrown something at us. I lowered the window and looked towards them. They were around 75m away. A soon as they saw that we had stopped they took to their heels and disappeared into bylane. By the time I got the car turned around and went in search of them they were nowhere to be seen. We searched the small roads for a couple of km and gave up.
Then I inspected the car. The stone had struck the car on the C pillar just behind the rear window on the right side. Remember my sister was sitting there with her baby. What chance did they have if the stone thrown had struck a few inches towards the front.........if the metal on the car had a dent a couple of inches long what chance did a baby or any human being have........what if we had been in my dads M800 instead of the Indica.............would we have escaped with just a dent.........
We gave up the search and returned to the car. We had travelled on that particular route for hundreds of times but it was our first such experince. I was thoroughly shaken up after the incident and now each time i pass that place I slow down invoulantarly. I just cant think of why people would do such things. If the boys were mentally deranged means ok they couldnt think rationally. But these guys looked perfectly normal. I just hope that someone knocks some sense into them before they really hurt someone.

[kutlee]

yeah disturbing some times. I think they might be 'thozhilillatha yuvajanangal' not mentally retarded or something. Don't know what to do. Good that you escaped. Some nasty things happen on the most familiar routes. Hope all such morons get some jobs to do rather than throwing stones.
I remember one incident when my friend came to office on 'hartal day'. It was the old hartal when vehichles weren't allowed to move. But the hartal wasn't so strong and my friend's car was struck on the front windshield by someone just like this with a stick or some rod. Imagine how he could do this to a moving car. My friend escaped but a windsheild gone.
Thanks for sharing this. Should be careful when i note something like this.

[snaronikar]

Sad to hear what has happened. Good news is that nobody was hurt.

Yeah. These kind of morons will be there in every nook and corner in this country. I feel that the 2 boys might have played a prank.

[bblost]

I had a stone thrown at my car.
wrote about it in this
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/674692-post17.html (Dont get mugged this year!!!)

Originally Posted by bblost

It was holi in 2005. I am driving with my wife in a petrol Accent to Guntur from Hyderabad on the National Highway .

I see a group of 20 ~ 30 people throwing holi powder on the passing by vehicles.
They have blocked a truck and I get on to the right hand side lane.
I am not stopping.
but don't have a choice as they have blocked the entire way.
I honk and try to pass.
They are intent on creating trouble.
They realise I am getting thru and so they lift the car's front up.
I don't accelarate anymore.
My worry is that they might suddenly drop the front and I will drive right into them.

My defense is keeping my wife calm and not doing or saying anything.
I am not displaying any emotion at all.
Just looking at them but now I have the car in reverse gear.
I look at the truck and realise that he is backing up.
My car tires touch the road and I race back.
The gap created between these idiots and the truck is enough to get me thru.

One of them flings a stone, cracking the rear light assembly.
but I am off.

A km or two away I see a similar crowd around a dead kid on the road.
Was this kid knocked down by a victim of these guys who was now going tooo fast.

keep your cool with you all the time.

[Xehaust]

I would like to add that it could be a deliberate act. Your thoughts have sent a chill through me regarding your sister. Thank god. But you might just be even luckier that it was not what im stating below.

I have heard of stories where dacoits and robbers use this as a tactic. Either throw a stone or something at the car. The driver stops the car to see what happened.

In the meanwhile, a few men hiding a little ahead of the place where the stone thrower is present, come out of hiding and hijack the car, rob the occupents and in some really bad cases, even rape & murder!!!

They do this on highways and regular routes.

I would suggest that if ever you feel something amiss, dont stop immediately on a secluded spot or on the side of a road, rather drive till the next town or a petrol pump or some public space and then stop and inspect. Everyone please keep this in mind, even if your driving at night in a city, dont stop on secluded spots no matter what.

EDIT: Bblost's post is exactly what im talking about. His post just came up while i was typing

[TrueDreamer]

Sad to hear this. Glad you are safe. Never stop on highways alone.

"I strongly pray those who harm or intent to harm vehicles or its inmates on roads get hit by some vehicle some day and reach their destiny - TrueDreamer"

[jkdas]

Now you know why Americans love guns

@ kutliee;

A suggestion; use good quality sun films. Your story was an eye opener and this thing about sunfilms came to my mind.

[govigov]

bad... that too in kerala... this particular story reminds me of the movie "babel"

[Ramon]

Originally Posted by Xehaust

I would suggest that if ever you feel something amiss, dont stop immediately on a secluded spot or on the side of a road, rather drive till the next town or a petrol pump or some public space and then stop and inspect. Everyone please keep this in mind, even if your driving at night in a city, dont stop on secluded spots no matter what.

This highway (NH 47) is not your typical high way. It is a two lane affair with houses and shops all the way. Even the bylane the boys ran into led had many houses there. But none of the people had seen them.

[Nitin]

My Uncle had a similar experience,while driving down from Calicut to Thrissur. He was in an Ikon,and doing about 80kmph. Not much traffic and road conditions were good.
After one particular town,the road curves to the right,and being an accident prone zone,my uncle slowed down to about 65kmph. He sees these 2 boys,around 13-15years of age,standing on the side of the road. As he moved through the curve,one of the boys picked up a big stone and flung it straight at the car. Call it his bad timing,or my uncle's good luck,the rock missed the car by a few mms.
This rock ends up hitting a Police jeep that was coming from the opposite direction,and the constable happened to spot the kids. The rock hit the jeep close to the windshield,and the driver screeched to a halt in the middle of the road. Good presence of mind,the constable took after the boys and caught them right along the road.
Turns out,the two were packed off to a juvenile retention centre somewhere close by for a week.

[mamba24]

lol stone throwing. I must say its a bad thing. Cant imagine why someone would do that.

But here in California in a city called compton. if your driving around 10pm the chances you get robbed or killed at gunpoint is an alarming 45%.

[LLL]

just cannot understand the mentality of these guys....saw and heard many such incidents in mumbai locals.

saw a stone flung in a compartment hit a person standing on the footboard & he fell down from the speeding train.

saw another stone flung in a compartment hit a person sitting on a window seat, right in the eye.

had heard from a classmate that sometimes ppl throw **** in the ladies compartments when the train passes through slums..

[esteem_lover]

Really sad. It is these kind of morons that should be banned from the roads.

[wischvuanaudh]

Thank god!! only that much happened na. Yes, even i wont advice you to stop a car at night in such a situation. And to chase those guys??..not even in dreams!!These creepos can gang-up fast!! To make the matters worse,if that anti-social element is a local there, all those public in that area will try to prove that they have done nothing..even if they saw what just happened. This is so typical especially in kerala. Everybody is like "ammavante makkal"

[wischvuanaudh]

Originally Posted by esteem_lover

Really sad. It is these kind of morons that should be banned from the roads.

Not from the roads esteem_lover, but from the planet too!! wish shot guns were supplied throuh ration supply shops.