Mumbai: A video purportedly showing the Railway Protection Force constable, who on Monday shot dead his senior colleague and three passengers on board the moving Jaipur-Mumbai Central Express, explaining why he took the extreme step hints towards it being a hate crime.
Constable Chetan Singh (34) shot dead RPF Assistant Sub-Inspector Tika Ram Meena and three other passengers identified as Abdul Qadirbhai Mohammed Hussain Bhanpurwala (48), Akhtar Abbas Ali (48), and Sadar Mohammed Hussain when the train was moving near Palghar railway station in Maharashtra. The incident occurred after 5 am after the Mumbai-bound Jaipur Superfast Express crossed Vapi station (in Gujarat).
One of the three civilians was shot dead in B5 coach, another in B6, and one more in the pantry car located between B5 and B6 coaches, a Railway official said. In the video shared on social media, the accused RPF constable is seen standing in front of one of the dead bodies of the three passengers. He can be heard saying, “Pakistan se operate hue hain. Tumhari media.... yahi desh ki media ye khabrein dikha rahi hai, Pata chal raha hai unko, sab pata chal raha hai, inke aaqa hai wahan...Agar Hindustan me rehna hai, toh mai kehta hun...” (They are operating from Pakistan. Your media...This country's media is showing the news. They know everything, their bosses are beyond the borders...If you have to live in India, then I tell you...)
The slain man at the feet of the accused constable is seen in a pool of blood while other passengers watch the culprit in horror as he goes on explaining his shooting the men down. Inputs suggested the culprit went from one bogey to another and picked up his targets based on the visual identity of the victims belonging to a specific community.
Singh, who hails from Hathras in Uttar Pradesh, was eventually nabbed while trying to flee after pulling the chain of the train which stopped between Mira Road and Dahisar stations (on Mumbai suburban network. "RPF constable Chetan Singh, who was on escort duty, opened fire at his senior Tika Ram Meena and went on shooting dead three more passengers in different bogies of the train," Government Railway Police (GRP) commissioner Ravindra Shisve told media persons.
Asked about the video showing the accused constable justifying the killings, Shisve said the video clip is being examined along with other materials. "It is too early to jump to any conclusion, and at this stage, it will be premature to comment anything and share any details about the probe," Shisve said, adding that police will investigate and examine whatever material they get.
"This is the first-of-its-kind of the incident on a running train. Passengers are scared. We want to assure them that police will investigate the incident in detail," he added. A senior police official, according to PTI, said the accused RPF constable was very short-tempered. According to GRP, Singh fired 12 rounds from his automatic weapon. The GRP recovered eight bullets from his automatic weapon after the incident.
After the incident, the train was held up at Borivali station for about an hour from 6.21 am to 7.15 am. It reached its final destination Mumbai Central station at 8.07 am, about 72 minutes late, as per the train's running status. Most of the passengers from the B5 and B6 coaches alighted at Borivali station. A senior RPF official said ASI Meena hailed from Sawai Madhopur in Rajasthan. He was supposed to retire in 2025.
According to railway officials, the accused constable was transferred to Mumbai from the Bhavnagar division last March and had recently visited his native place Hathras. He joined duty on July 17. He was arrested under section 302 (Punishment for Murder) of the Indian Penal Code and the Arms Act. (With PTI inputs)
