[LLL]

It appears to me that these idiots tend to act rowdy when they are in a bigger car and with multiple guys in the car. Most of these fools are really cowards and will run away when alone.

I guess they are creating an environment wherein their families will also face such rowdyism on the roads...as they say...as you shall sow, so shall you reap!!!

[raghu.t.k]

Good to know you are safe.

But as the incident of the IAF pilot shows, its not just rowdies and hooligans who do the damage. In this case a lawyer who happend to be travelling with his wife, against a couple of Airforce officers.

These days the situation is turning worse, where everyone thinks, might is right, and power corrupts. In most of these situations they have scant respect for the public or for their own vehicle.

And to add to this, such aggression could be part of a wider crimnal plot. There is an article in TOI on how couple of guys rams into a car late at night after owner had withdrawn some cash from an ATM, starts an altercation. They then force their way into the car on the pretext of compensation and kidnaps the owner of the car.

The safest option, as other have advised is, never step out of your car, and to leave the scene as soon as possible.

Drive Safely...

[evo8]

This is really sad . Especially Bangalore is becoming an hell to all these kinds of drivers. Even the educated ones and the so called IT guys are the worst lot. I have had my own set of incidents with these folks. The following is one incident that i came across quite recently.

Once Me and my wife was driving towards old madras road from thew aiport on there was this cabbie who was blocking the road.. and my incessant honking irritated him. I gestured that he could park it in the corner of the road and continue his business and i moved on. In the next signal this guy pulls on to my left side and knocks at the window and was pulling a fight. I saw a policeman in the signal and immediately cut across in front of him so that he cant scoot from the place. And immediately told my wife complain that this guy is harnessing you. The cabbie scening danger, reverved the cab and somehow scooted from the place in the process bumping an auto guy behind him. And last i knew that the auto guy was furiously chasing him down the road. I neither saw the cab or the auto guy after that. Still i made it a point to provide the number to the cop and went on my way. If that cop was not around , I wonder what would've happened.

[Ajaybiz]

Sad but need to teach some lessons to these guys, i think one should carry something with him for those kinda situations may be small air gun, long metal rod will be perfect.
Forget roadside people n rowdies i had an incident where i had a fight with well known IT company's guy and he took advantage of being local and even the traffic police favered him as i was not knowing the language, after wasting his and mine 1 hour we all left without any results as i think so after seeing me also as an IT guy he gave up.
I gave my visiting card also to that guy if he wants some compensation n all but looks like he was ashemed of himself that what he was doing on the road and didnt called me back
Dont want to put the name of that IT firm but looks like they dont have quality people apart from numbers.

[Rocky_Balboa]

Amitoj,
These things happen, best is to ignore the rapid thoughts that come to your mind pondering over the incident. Glad You managed to escape and are safe (Could You just reply in this thread).

Take off from driving for a couple of days atleast, let the incident be a thing of the past before You drive again.

[shyamhegde]

Amitoj, anyone in your situation would have done the same thing. And good you got out of the trouble unhurt.
Thanks for sharing your experience. It is a warning for all of us.

I had kept your post open and put my laptop in standby and took home. My wife saw the post at home when i had kept the system on the table. I got a good 10 minutes 'bhashan' from her on what I should NOT do on road.

I got in to argument few weeks before with an auto rickshaw driver. I was passing through the Narrow and busy road parallel to Commercial Street in Bangalore. I was driving slowly coz there were couple of bicycles and bikes going slowly, following a goods rickshaw. Suddenly an auto rickshaw driver started honking from behind and started abusing me. I showed him that there is traffic ahead. But he continued his remarks. At the end of the road there was a traffic police. I blocked the road at that point, called the police and told him about the rickshaw driver behind my car. He
pulled him aside and let me go.
As you rightly said (and many others here), you never know who is there in the other side, better to avoid any arguments or rage. Especially when we are on ring roads, non peak hours etcetra.

[srishiva]

Don't know if this the way of people are trying to tell you to learn kannada !!

We are becoming a very impatient society where most think the other guy is responsible for our miseries. Its going to grow more with the economic gap growing wider too. Its better to avoid confrontation since we value our life more than them.

I have gotten into so many situations like these and people around support you if you are also a local. Even the first question the police ask is your name, what you do and try to figure out where you are from etc.

[diabloo]

I think you are talking about this Parking spat: Lawyer kills IAF officer-India-The Times of India

SOLAN: A dispute over parking of cars took a gory turn when a local lawyer stabbed a young IAF officer to death at a place 25km from here.

Flt Lt Anubhav, 24, stationed at Ambala air force station on Kasauli-Parwanoo was stabbed by the lawyer last evening. He was taken to millitary hospital at Kasauli and later reffered to command hospital at Chandi Mandir but succumbed to injuries on the way.

Police said the two got into an argument over parking at Garkhal, near Kasauli, which degenated into violence during which the advocate stabbed the air force officer with a sharp- edged weapon.

The lawyer was arrested and a case registered.

Originally Posted by raghu.t.k

But as the incident of the IAF pilot shows, its not just rowdies and hooligans who do the damage. In this case a lawyer who happend to be travelling with his wife, against a couple of Airforce officers.

[Chevy_lover]

I met with a similar fate some time back. I was riding my Fiero and my wife was my pillion rider. We were driving along the Salunkhe Vihar road in Pune. I was keeping a speed of 40 km/hr, as it was night time!! Suddenly out of no where, two girls in a scooty came directly in my path. There was no way I could avoid them. I braked very hard but could not prevent a collission. My front wheels locked and my poor wifey was thrown over my left shoulder!!! I too suffered a nasty fall. The scooty's front part was badly broken. Both the girls were lying on the ground!! My Fiero's mud guard and crash guard also broke.

I somehow managed to get up and ran to my wifey. Luckily she did not have any injuries, but her head had hit the road. Seeing the accident, some ladies in a nearby restaurant took wifey inside and gave her water and calmed her down.

I was very angry and asked the girls for their license. They frantically called someone from their mobile. I called the Police control room. When the police arrived, the whole story changed. The girl's uncle and a local corporator arrived at the scene. I was made the culprit. They told the police that I was driving at 80 k/h. The girl who drove the scooty did not have a license. So the pillion rider, who had license, became the rider!!

After a war of words, the police told me to compromise. They told me that the corporator was a big rowdy and it was not safe to fight with him!!!

I suffered a loss of about 1000 bucks then. But I forgot all my worries when I found out that Wifey did not have any injuries and her head was fine. Still I took her for an examination by a Neuro specialist!!!

After this incident, I lost total faith in Police!

[blorebuddy]

Even I have observed.
Now a days I am getting lot of free advices for none of my mistakes.

[raghu.t.k]

Originally Posted by diabloo

I think you are talking about this Parking spat: Lawyer kills IAF officer-India-The Times of India

Yes, thats the one, but thats only, yet another incident that happened in our country. Last year when I was at Gurgaon, I remember an incident where the son of some politician/mayor was killed during a road rage in Delhi.

These days the attitude towards settling of disputes, is always to settle it with maximum force possible, which sometimes unfortunately ends with fatal results. The rule of law is least respected, since they are sure that they could could come out, by greasing the right places or using their clout or contact (sometimes a combination). If its not these then its Drunken Driving (again a lack of respect for the law and lives).

[shebin]

[ Next thing we know is the auto fellow's wife registered a case againt my collegue that he hit her on the head!! ..Adding more salt to the wound the cops demand 5000 to close the matter. Their reasoning.." why cant you pay 5000 when you guys earn 50000 per month in a IT company " Sheeezzz. Finaly to get out from the frustuation someone from my office paid 4000 and they got away from there. Cant even imagine the mental trauma my collegue would have gone through.
Moral of the story be calm when driving/riding, even someone else pisses you off, especially in Bangalore where even the cops dont give a damn!!.[/quote]

This attitude is usually seen across bangalore.Since IT guys are earning more they only should pay even if its others mistake!!!!.some cheap locals and the rickshaw people are looking for an an opportunity to exploit them and the cops usually support them.Mostly the techies come from outside and dont ahve local contacts and dont mind paying up huge amounts to get out of the situation.Their lies the catch for these thugs.I am not going overboard but i feel these people have huge contempt and jealousy towards the techies and their reason is simple.....YOU PEOPLE EARN MORE

[n_aditya]

Agree with you Amitoj. No point getting into a scrap with people unless one is a martial arts expert or has jobless goons at his beck and call. Glad you wound up safe.

I had a similar experience in chennai and there is a thread on that too. I got bumped by an auto while waiting at a signal. When the lights changed he squeezed thru traffic but I managed to chase him. Luckily i alerted the cops at the next traffic signal for this guy was coming towards me with a knife.

Originally Posted by amitoj

Question left unanswered: Why??

Takes all kinds of people to make this world. What we need is not guns, cos then we will have people shooting each other for the most trivial reasons. What is necessary is strict rules and even stricter policing.... which might never happen in our good 'ol India.

Like the sayings go... Money talks and bull$hit walks !!! Might is right !!! Very fitting quotes for the attitudes that revolve in our country. There is absolutely no courtesy for others, no one wants to wait even for few seconds to let the others pass. So much urgency and hurry but when provoked these morons have all the time in the world to stop and create a public scene. Disgusting. Utterly disgusting. Bloody cops and politicians are supposed to lead by example but they care a damn cos they have all the power. @#$%^&*

[finneyp]

Most of the Auto drivers & Call centre cabbies in Blore are rowdies, though they flout all traffic rules & cause accidents most of the time, they have the audacity to shout back at us & sometimes abuse in the local language!

If they are 1 or 2 we too can give them back a mouthful & then carry on, but if they are a gang, better to avoid them all together.

[ggkg]

I doubt if kannada or hogenekal etc., have anything to do with this because on anecdotal evidence, many (a substantial minority, if not majority) of auto drivers in Bangalore are tamils. You will not know unless you happen to hear them talking to other auto-drivers. Or look for pictures pasted on the side of the auto.

They are marinated in the same septic tank - party goon/movie culture of Chennai and are basically rowdies doing auto as side-business, just like in Chennai. Any day I would prefer Bang. auto drivers to chennai ones as in chennai they are hardcore party rowdies.

I passed through Bangalore yesterday and asked for directions in kannada and sometimes got replied back in Tamil perhaps guessing from my accent. But on the whole the auto drivers were helpful in terms of directions etc. They are the only ones you can ask for direction as the bikes are helmeted and cars have windows closed with aircon.