Siliguri, 17th May: Allegations of extortion have once again surfaced in the NJP station area. Some local youths have been accused of beating up drivers for not paying money. For a long time, there have been complaints of the forcible collection of money from drivers operating in the station’s parking area.
Earlier, a driver from Sikkim had also alleged that he was assaulted after refusing to pay money. A similar incident occurred again on Saturday morning when a sum of Rs 400 was reportedly demanded from a driver. Upon his refusal, he was allegedly beaten up.
The victim later lodged a complaint at the NJP police station. Other drivers have also claimed that a group of individuals have set up a counter outside the station and are demanding money from the drivers operating in the area.
The counter, known as the NJP Taxi Helper Unit, is situated outside the station premises. A member present at the counter stated that no one is forced to pay money and that the contributions from drivers are used for various work-related purposes.