The Railway Protection Force (RPF) constable, who allegedly shot dead his senior and three passengers on the moving Jaipur-Mumbai Central Express train, is not cooperating in the investigation and raising slogans, India Today reported on Tuesday. The constable, Chetan Singh, allegedly shot dead four persons on a moving train near Palghar railway station on the outskirts of Mumbai in the early hours of Monday. He was produced before a court in Mumbai’s Borivali on Tuesday. The police demanded 14-day custody of the accused but the court granted 7-day custody of the accused.
Police officials, interrogating Chetan Singh, told India Today that he was not cooperating and was giving unrelated answers when asked any question related to the shooting. Not just that, he also raised slogans while he was in police custody.
The accused’s lawyer said his client had done nothing wrong and that he was not given food for over 24 hours after the incident. “My client has not done anything wrong. He said whatever he did was with a service gun and nothing wrong. He was not given food for over 24 hours,” the advocate said, adding that the court has directed police to give timely food to Chetan. The advocate also said that cops will be investigating whether Chetan was mentally unstable.
Police sources told India Today that statements from over 15 people had been taken till now about the train firing incident, including statements from police officials and passengers on the train.
Chetan Singh forced a passenger of the B2 bogie of the train to walk at gunpoint up to the pantry car, which is two coaches away, where he shot him dead, a GRP official told the news agency PTI on Tuesday.
“RPF constable Chetan Singh forced Syed S, a passenger travelling in B2 coach of the train, to walk at gunpoint up to the pantry car where he shot him dead. They crossed coaches, B2 and B1, before reaching the pantry car while other passengers watched,” the official said.
The GRP is collecting details of the passengers in at least five bogies who might have witnessed the killings as Singh strutted with the automatic weapon.
The deceased passengers were identified as Abdul Kadarbhai Mohammed Hussain Bhanpurwala (58), a resident of Nalasopara in Palghar, and Asgar Abbas Sheikh (48), a resident of Madhubani in Bihar.
The third passenger killed by Singh is identified as Syed S (43). Singh had allegedly shot dead RPF Assistant Sub-Inspector Tikaram Meena and another passenger in the B5 coach and one more passenger in the S6 coach, which is 8th bogie from the B5 coach, an official had said.
The Railway Board has set up a five-member committee to probe the incident.
(With inputs from PTI)
