Patna, July 23: The railways today set up a six-member inquiry committee of Junior Administrative Grade (JAG) level to probe into last night's train rampage incident when a students' group set an AC coach of the South Bihar Express (13288) on fire after a student was mowed down.
Danapur divisional railway manager (DRM) R.K. Jha has set up the inquiry and asked officials to submit the report as soon as possible.
Twenty-two year old Sashi Kumar alias Navneet, a Kaimur resident, was mowed down by the Islampur-Patna passenger train and succumbed to injuries on his way to hospital. A few of his friends brought Navneet's body back and laid it on the railway tracks near Rajendra Nagar Terminal, which later turned into a rampage zone when infuriated students pelted the South Bihar Express with stones.
The six member JAG level committee includes senior divisional operation manager Vineet Kumar, senior divisional mechanical engineer Shravan Kumar, senior divisional electrical engineer Ravish Kumar, senior divisional electrical engineer operation Rajesh Kumar, senior divisional security officer B.P. Mandal and assistant security officer M.I. Khan.
"The incident occurred around 6pm on the railway track passing in front of Nalanda Medical College and Hospital," Patna rail superintendent of police Jitendra Mishra told The Telegraph. "The area has a number of lodges where students reside and they cross the railway tracks in violation of norms. According to eyewitnesses, this boy was crossing the railway track along with two others and had earphones plugged in. The passenger train came from the rear and mowed him down. The two others were lucky."
Mishra added that the Rajendra Nagar Government Railway Police (GRP) informed the local police which took the body to a private hospital where Navneet was declared "brought dead".
He added: "The agitated students brought the body back on the tracks and started hurling stones. The South Bihar Express was about to depart at 8.25pm. I asked the DRM to pull it back but he expressed helplessness because of some technical reasons and that was the time when the mob got more agitated and set the train's AC 3 coach (number B1) on fire. Passengers on the train were not injured. Some received minor injuries, but yes they were scared."
Soon after the incident, train movement was stopped at the terminal. The trains, which could not depart because of the agitation include Udyan Abha Toofan Express (13007/), Upasana Express (12327), Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express (12423), Sahibganj-Danapur InterCity Express (13235) and Poorvottar Sampark Kranti Express (15602).
Mishra said that on the complaint of Rajendra Nagar Terminal station master A.K. Sinha, an FIR was lodged against 21 named accused and two persons were arrested.
The arrested people include Narendra Kumar, a resident of Sitamarhi and Jitendra Kumar, a resident of Samastipur.
Around 500 agitators had gathered at the Rajendra Nagar Terminal and they broke all the glasses of the AC coach.
All the trains were stranded till 1am and the tracks were cleared by the GRP and railway protection force (RPF) personnel by midnight.
Eyewitness Anup Kumar, who runs a tea shop at the Rajendra Nagar terminal, said: "The agitated students also attacked GRP and RPF personnel when they reached the spot to control the situation. The police used lathis to disperse the crowd. I saw passengers running on the track to save themselves from the stone pelting. It was really a pathetic situation."
East Central Raiway (ECR) chief public relations officer Arvind Kumar Rajak said 10 trains were rescheduled today. He also said that South Bihar Express today will go without AC coaches as the glasses were broken by the agitators.
