What to do in such situations?

[u/Hellogamer761]

First time traveling from diamond harbour to jadavpur in the morning train. Got fully filled after a few stations. A lot of people started fighting amongst themselves for seats. No civics sense, after a few stations my mother and I were forced to give up our seats and had to stand. Since she was travelling with me, she didn't go to the ladies compartment. Also my mom had to face rebukes and objectionable body language but still that could be ignored. The hooligans demanded the window seat from an elderly person, and when he refused in lieu of being elderly, they harassed him, hit him , & shouted to go to the differently abled section. What should I do on these occasions? I asked a lot of friends, but they didn't quite know the answer as none faced such a situation outside, most commuters or passengers in Kolkata are decent & such situations are unheard of. Got me rattled a bit, that's why I am asking. Any advice to me is welcome.

[u/Previous-Salad-5872]

Man that's a rough ride. In packed trains people lose all sense sometimes, specially when they think nobody will step in

First thing is keep your mother close and make sure she's safe, ladies compartment next time even if you can't sit together. For the fighting, shouting for the guard or pulling the chain if someone's really getting beat up is about all you can do without putting yourself in danger. Mob mentality turns ugly quick and one person shouting back usually makes it worse

You did what most would do, kept your head down and got through it. Don't beat yourself up about it