Kollam: In an act of courage and quick thinking, Jalaja Suresh, Vice President of the Neduvathoor Grama Panchayat and President of the NSS Taluk Women’s Union, successfully caught two women who stole money from her handbag during a KSRTC bus ride.

The incident took place around 2 pm on Monday, as Jalaja, who is also a Post Office Recurring Deposit (RD) agent, was returning from the Kundara Post Office. She boarded a KSRTC bus from Pallimukku to Pathanapuram at 1:50 pm. Near Manikandan Althara in Kottarakkara, as she stood to get off the bus, two fellow women passengers suddenly stood up alongside her.

One of the women deliberately pushed Jalaja and hurriedly asked, “Is this Chanthamukku?” When Jalaja replied that it wasn’t, they backed away, raising her suspicions.

After she got off, Jalaja checked her handbag and was shocked to find the zipper open and her cash missing. Without hesitation, she hailed a nearby auto-rickshaw and gave chase, tracking the bus to Chanthamukku, where traffic congestion delayed her briefly. She immediately alerted a traffic police officer, who cleared the way for her auto to proceed.

By then, the suspects had already exited the bus and boarded another auto. Jalaja’s vehicle intercepted them just in time. In a bold move, she grabbed the handle of the pickpockets' moving auto to stop it, and physically pulled the women out as they attempted to flee. In the scuffle, bundles of cash hidden in their clothes fell to the ground.

Despite the women’s denial and claims that they did not take the money, Jalaja held onto them until the police arrived and took them into custody.

The accused were later identified as Selvi (45) and her daughter Athini (27) from Gobichettipalayam, Tamil Nadu. Police confirmed the duo is part of a known theft ring operating under multiple aliases across different regions.

Jalaja, who has served on the panchayat for over a decade and worked as an RD agent for 25 years, told reporters that she was deeply upset when she realised the money was missing. She didn’t think twice, just moved ahead to catch them.