KATHMANDU: Transport federations and workers’ organisations have launched protests demanding an impartial judicial investigation into the death of passenger bus driver Arjun Dong, who died after setting himself on fire in Tripureshwor on Monday morning.
Six federations and workers’ organisations have formed a joint struggle committee to establish the facts surrounding the incident, provide appropriate compensation to the victim’s family and ensure occupational safety for transport workers.
Expressing serious concern over the incident, in which Dong set himself on fire inside bus No. Ba 5 Kha 4274 in front of the Eye Hospital in Tripureshwor, the organisations have demanded that all facts be made public.
They said the investigation should not be limited to the issue of a routine traffic violation but should also examine the conduct and working practices of the regulatory authorities involved in the dispute between the driver and traffic police.
According to the organisations, the bus was travelling from Mulpani to Thankot Bhanjyang when Dong honked after a motorcycle parked on his side obstructed traffic near the Eye Hospital. Traffic police then stopped the bus and asked for its documents, leading to a dispute over a possible fine, they said.
More traffic police personnel subsequently arrived and took the bus to the area in front of the Department of Passports, where passengers were asked to get off and were reportedly kept there for around two hours. The organisations claimed that Dong also objected when police attempted to take him to the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office in Baggikhana.
They said traffic police later contacted the vehicle owner and asked him to send Dong to Baggikhana. The owner also contacted the driver, who reportedly refused to go, saying he had done nothing wrong and had been subjected to mental pressure and harassment by traffic police.
The organisations claimed the vehicle owner had also informed the concerned traffic police officer and office about the driver’s mental state.
Shortly afterward, Dong closed the bus doors and set himself on fire, causing the bus to catch fire as well. Transport sector organisations said they were shocked by the incident.
They stressed the need for an impartial investigation into the cause of the incident and responsibility for it.
“If a traffic rule was violated, it can be subject to legal action, but legal action and mistreatment that drives a worker to death are not the same thing,” the organisations said in their joint statement.
They have called for an investigation based on CCTV footage, eyewitness accounts, phone records and details from the police officers involved to determine how the circumstances leading to Dong’s self-immolation developed.
Nine-point demands
The transport organisations have demanded immediate relief, appropriate compensation and rehabilitation for the deceased driver’s family. They have also sought compensation for the owner of the bus, which was completely destroyed by fire.
They have called for a judicial investigation committee involving relevant stakeholders to examine the entire sequence of events from the beginning of the dispute between the driver and traffic police until the incident and make the findings public.
The organisations have also demanded that all transport workers be employed only after signing employment agreements in accordance with the Labour Act, 2017, and be registered with the Social Security Fund.
They have called for a 24-hour helpline and complaint-handling mechanism where transport workers can immediately report alleged mistreatment, unnecessary harassment and legal or procedural problems involving traffic police.
They have also demanded a mechanism to regularly monitor and investigate whether traffic police inspections, enforcement actions and treatment of drivers comply with established legal procedures and codes of conduct.
The statement called for making traffic police operations more technology-based and people-oriented and establishing a regular monitoring mechanism involving stakeholders during inspections and enforcement.
The organisations have also demanded a review and restructuring of the powers delegated to traffic police under road and vehicle-related laws and called for workplace and mental safety of transport workers to be recognised as an integral part of transport safety.
They further called for road infrastructure across the country, including bus stops, passenger boarding and alighting areas, toilets, eateries and rest areas, to be made organised, safe and worker-friendly.
Warning of further protests
The six federations and organisations have formed a joint struggle committee, with their presidents as members, and said they would continue their movement until their demands are addressed.
They warned that if their demands are not addressed immediately, they would announce further peaceful, democratic and lawful protest programmes.
The joint statement was signed by the Federation of Nepalese National Transport Entrepreneurs (FNNTE) President Punya Prasad Sitaula (Saroj), Public Transport Central Federation President Dolanath Khanal, Nepal Truck Transport Entrepreneurs Federation President Rajendra Bikram Baniya, Nepal Transport Independent Workers Organisation President Bhimjwala Rai, All Nepal Transport Workers Association President Dipak KC and Nepal Transport Workers Association General Secretary Jagannath Gautam.
The joint struggle committee has called for the facts of the incident to be made public and for justice and appropriate compensation to be provided to the victim’s family.
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