Terrorist conspiracy in Sabarmati Express derailment case, ATS joins investigation

The possibility of a terrorist conspiracy is increasing in the case of the 22 coaches of the Sabarmati Express (19168) that derailed in Kanpur in the early hours of August 17. The way the tracks were tampered with suggests that there was a conspiracy to derail the train and cause as many casualties as possible. Although the train derailed, fortunately there were no casualties. After the intelligence agency, the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has now also joined the investigation in the case.

In this case, senior civil engineer Mahendra Pratap Singh Sisodia has lodged a complaint at Panki police station. The complaint states that there was a broken piece of track on the railway line and the train derailed when it collided with it. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had also said the same.

After the accident, Minister Vaishnaw had stated that the locomotive of the train had collided with a heavy object on the track. The locomotive has signs of collision and the IB is investigating it. At the same time, railway officials said there was suspicion of a conspiracy as the Patna Express had passed through the same track 1 hour and 20 minutes before the arrival of the Sabarmati Express. The track was clear at that time.

The FIR states that the Sabarmati Express was travelling from Varanasi to Ahmedabad. It was driven by Loco Driver AP Bundela. On the night of August 17, the train reached Govindpuri-Bhimsen station at 2:27 am. A heavy object was spotted on the centre line at Km 1338/21-19. When the Loco Driver/Co-Driver saw it, they initiated emergency braking but the heavy object collided with the cattle grid of the locomotive.

The collision caused the cattle guard to be bent. The front wheels and 22 wagons also derailed. The train driver informed the Jhansi checkpoint about this at 2.30 am. A piece of old track was found at the spot. Traces of fresh heating were found in it. This suggests that a piece of iron was deliberately placed on the track to derail the train.

2-3 pieces of track were also found on the spot. These pieces were placed on the tracks. They were fastened with screws so that they would not come off due to the vibrations of the train and the train would run over them at high speed, derailing and causing maximum destruction. However, the speed of the train was 80-90 km/h and the train driver initiated an emergency braking after seeing the suspicious object.

At the same time, senior ATS officials said that ATS is present at every derailment incident and conducts investigations at its own level. ATS has been asked to submit the report of the Sabarmati Express accident to the headquarters in Lucknow as soon as possible. Evidence is currently being collected to identify the persons who placed the pieces on the tracks.