Saving a reptile in distress

An onlooker charmed the snake away from the chassis of a scooter

Curiosity can sometimes lead one into dangerous situations as Syed Sadiq, a signboard designer from Cottonpet, learnt the hard way on Wednesday.

A wayward rat snake being chased by a group of people near Siddalingaiah Circle on Kasturba Road got into Sadiq’s two-wheeler as he slowed down by the roundabout out of curiosity while on his way to MG Road from Majestic. The reptile made its way into Sadiq’s motorcycle when one of the chasers in the crowd pushed it with a stick, and flew it into Sadiq’s vehicle.

The snake’s sudden movement caught Sadiq napping, and he fell down out of fear.
The snake’s swift entry into his vehicle, however, was just the beginning of an ordeal for Sadiq.

The snake remained stuck in the vehicle’s chassis, refusing to come out as it feared for its life given the noise and the crowd around.

As more and more passersby stopped by out of inquisitiveness, and haphazardly parked their vehicles, traffic at the busy thoroughfare came to a standstill, giving a tough time to the police personnel.

Meanwhile, Sadiq’s vehicle was shifted on to the footpath, and then began the exercise to extricate the snake. After a struggle that lasted about half-an-hour, an onlooker Mudassir Khan and his friends managed to push the snake out and move it into the Cubbon Park.

Khan was no snake charmer. Forget about rescuing a snake, he said he touched one for the first time in life.

“I saw some youngsters trying to insert a stick and other things into the two-wheeler to push the snake out. I decided to give it a try to rescue it from the vehicle, safely. I acted on impulse and managed to take it out with the help of my friends,” Khan, a manager with a telecom service provider in Jayamahal, told Deccan Herald.

The snake chase left traffic policemen like Siddaramaiah on the tenterhooks.
The junction is generally very busy with five roads converging there. With bikes parked all over the road, there was traffic jam for more than 30 minutes, Siddaramaiah added.