Amritsar tragedy: SIT questions 14 drivers and guards of Northern Zone of Railways

Neeraj Bagga
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, November 14

A four-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Government Railway Police (GRP) on Wednesday questioned 14 drivers and guards of the Northern Zone of the Railways as a part of its enquiry into the tragic train accident which claimed 59 lives on October 19.

The SIT, headed by Assistant Inspector General (GRP) Daljit Singh Rana, DSP Surinder Kumar, Inspector Nirmal Singh and Inspector Dharminder Kalyan, quizzed railway employees.

It came out in the probe that the Railways had issued a direction of caution to all the trains plying between Manawala railway station and Amritsar railway station after a body was noticed close to Joda Phatak on that day.

The caution order had been issued from the Beas railway station at about 4.20 pm. The instruction may have been removed after lifting of the body from the site. 

Sources stated that the drivers and guards of four trains other than the DMU, which killed the Dasehra revellers, which had crossed Joda Phatak before the DMU were quizzed. These trains were Howrah Mail, Chattisgarh, Dadar and Superfast Amritsar to Chandigarh.

SHO GRP Amritsar railway station Balvir Singh Ghuman said the GRP had registered a case under Sections 304 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 304A (causing death by negligence) and 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the IPC, against unknown persons in connection with the train tragedy on October 20.

He said the names could only be incorporated in the FIR as per the recommendations of the SIT which has got three months long period.