Railway accepts reality, books RPF cop for act of hate

NT Correspondent

Mumbai: After initially dismissing any communal connection to the murder spree aboard a Jaipur-Mumbai train, the Government Railway Police (GRP) has taken a new stance by accusing RPF constable Chetan Singh of promoting communal enmity between various religious factions.

The charges, as outlined in Section 153A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) within the First Information Report (FIR) against Chetan, involve inciting discord among distinct groups based on factors such as religion, race, place of residence, and language.

This development comes in the wake of a viral video that portrays Singh alongside a lifeless body at his feet, delivering a speech intertwined with references to Pakistan, Indian media, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and the mention of "Thackeray."

The accused individual's discourse took a sinister turn when he specifically targeted Muslims, given that three of the victims belonged to this community.

Starting with his superior, Sub-Inspector Tika Ram Meena, Singh's first victim, he went on to shoot three Muslim passengers – Abdul Kadarbhai Mohammed Hussain Bhanpurwala (48), a resident of Nalasopara in Palghar district, Asgar Abbas Sheikh (48), a native of Madhubani in Bihar and Sayyad Saifuddin, originally from Bidar in Karnataka who had settled in Hyderabad. Asaduddin Owaisi, the Chief of AIMIM and a Lok Sabha MP from Hyderabad, categorised the incident as a "terror attack" aimed at Muslims.

Owaisi posed questions regarding whether the accused constable might harbor political ambitions and expressed concerns about potential future support for him.

Earlier, the 34-year-old cop was booked for offences under IPC section 302 (murder) and relevant provisions of the Arms Act and the Railways Act.

The GRP sought his custody for another seven days, saying the incident took place on a running train that started from Jaipur and they need to collect CCTV footage of various spots as part of their investigation.