Passenger stops man from smoking in train by snatching cigarette, he tries to attack

An Indian Railways passenger was allegedly attacked by a man after he stopped him from smoking inside a train coach by snatching his cigarette. A video of the incident has triggered widespread outrage on social media.

The 27-second clip, shared by The Nalanda Index on X, shows the man seated on a side upper berth casually lighting a cigarette and continuing to smoke despite repeated objections from the passenger. Smoking inside trains is strictly prohibited and is a punishable offence under Indian Railways rules.

When the co-passenger attempted to intervene, the man ignored him. The incident escalated when the cigarette was snatched from the man’s hand, following which he allegedly attempted to attack the passenger who stopped him from smoking.

In its caption, The Nalanda Index called the incident “blatant lawlessness,” warning that smoking inside a moving train poses a serious fire hazard: “A single spark can trigger a major accident, putting hundreds of passengers at risk and causing massive loss of life and property.”

The account also questioned the absence of on-board enforcement, questioning why such dangerous behaviour was allowed to continue unchecked.

“Rules are meaningless if they are not enforced. Passenger safety cannot be left at the mercy of reckless individuals. Strict action is needed before negligence turns into tragedy,” read the caption of the post.

Watch the video here:

The Nalanda Index also tagged the official handles of the Railway Protection Force and the Ministry of Railways, prompting demands for strict action against the offender to ensure passenger safety.

Several other social media users also tagged the X accounts of the Railway Protection Force and urged authorities to penalize the man.

The Indian Railways is yet to respond to the viral video.