Case against CR officers for death due to derailment
By Divyesh Singh and Kamal Mishra
Ghatkopar businessman, who lost teenage son, registers complaint after an official inquiry blames electrical dept staff for the March 2014 mishap between Titwala and Ambivali.
The father of a teenager, who died in a March 2014 train derailment, has filed a police complaint against officers of Central Railway’s electrical department, alleging that their negligence led to his son’s death. The Kalyan railway police have registered the case under charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, and investigations have begun.
“The Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) conducted an inquiry into the incident and submitted his report in December last year. I sought a copy of the report and received it in July this year,” Lodhaya told Mumbai Mirror.
“The report said that the Schaku coupler had broken and this led to the derailment, resulting in the death of my son and injuries to several others,” Lodhaya said. “CRS Chetan Bakshi’s report said that officials from the electrical department were responsible for the breakage of the coupler, leading to the derailment.”
He added, “My son was inside the compartment and as the train derailed he suffered severe injuries all over his body. The report by the CRS states that the lives of 40 lakh commuters travelling on the Central line are in danger due to negligence of officials from the electrical department of Central Railway.”
Lodhaya kept waiting for the CR authorities to initiate action against those responsible for the derailment, but nothing happened. He finally approached the police and filed a case against officials of the electrical department. The GRP registered a case under Section 304 (2) of the IPC, which pertains to culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
“We have begun investigations and will soon start recording statements of more witnesses,” said a senior Kalyan GRP officer. Narendra Patil, CPRO, Central Railway, said, “We will look into the matter.”
Altogether 13 officers of the electrical department under the scanner for this incident, including officers of the rank of divisional engineer to junior engineers.
Couplers are used to bind two compartments of a train together. The derailment occurred when a coupler broke while the train was running at a high speed, and five compartments derailed in the process. Following the incident, CR authorities began changing the couplers of all local trains.
Ghatkopar businessman, who lost teenage son, registers complaint after an official inquiry blames electrical dept staff for the March 2014 mishap between Titwala and Ambivali.
The father of a teenager, who died in a March 2014 train derailment, has filed a police complaint against officers of Central Railway’s electrical department, alleging that their negligence led to his son’s death. The Kalyan railway police have registered the case under charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, and investigations have begun.
Mayur Lodhaya, 45, a Ghatkopar businessman who lodged the complaint, has been pursuing the investigations into the train derailment since the death of his son Dhaval, 18, on March 20 last year. Dhaval had gone to Asangaon with his friends and was returning in a CST bound local which derailed between Titwala and Ambivali at 2:50 pm. Lodhaya, who was informed about the incident, rushed to Kalyan’s Rukminibai Hospital, where he was told that Dhaval had died before admission.
“The Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) conducted an inquiry into the incident and submitted his report in December last year. I sought a copy of the report and received it in July this year,” Lodhaya told Mumbai Mirror.
“The report said that the Schaku coupler had broken and this led to the derailment, resulting in the death of my son and injuries to several others,” Lodhaya said. “CRS Chetan Bakshi’s report said that officials from the electrical department were responsible for the breakage of the coupler, leading to the derailment.”
He added, “My son was inside the compartment and as the train derailed he suffered severe injuries all over his body. The report by the CRS states that the lives of 40 lakh commuters travelling on the Central line are in danger due to negligence of officials from the electrical department of Central Railway.”
Lodhaya kept waiting for the CR authorities to initiate action against those responsible for the derailment, but nothing happened. He finally approached the police and filed a case against officials of the electrical department. The GRP registered a case under Section 304 (2) of the IPC, which pertains to culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
“We have begun investigations and will soon start recording statements of more witnesses,” said a senior Kalyan GRP officer. Narendra Patil, CPRO, Central Railway, said, “We will look into the matter.”
Altogether 13 officers of the electrical department under the scanner for this incident, including officers of the rank of divisional engineer to junior engineers.
Couplers are used to bind two compartments of a train together. The derailment occurred when a coupler broke while the train was running at a high speed, and five compartments derailed in the process. Following the incident, CR authorities began changing the couplers of all local trains.
