Train shocker: RPF cop shoots senior and 3 passengers

Mumbai: A Railway Protection Force constable early Monday morning shot dead his senior colleague and three passengers in two bogies and a pantry car on board the moving Jaipur-Mumbai Central Express near Palghar railway station in Maharashtra.

He was nabbed with his weapon later while trying to flee after passengers pulled the chain of the train which stopped near Mira Road station at around 6 AM.

Constable Chetan Singh (34) shot dead RPF Assistant Sub-Inspector Tika Ram Meena and another passenger in B5 coach with his automatic weapon. He then shot dead another passenger in a pantry car and one more passenger in S6 coach next to the pantry car after 5 AM, a Railway official said.

The deceased passengers were identified as Abdul Kadarbhai Mohammed Hussain Bhanpurwala (48), a resident of Nalasopara in Palghar, Asgar Abbas Sheikh (48), a resident of Madhubani in Bihar, and one Sadar Mohammed Hussain.

Alleging that the incident was a “terror attack” targeted at Muslims, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi tweeted that it was “specifically targeted at Muslims. It is the product of continuous anti-Muslim hate speech & unwillingness of @narendramodi to put an end to it. Will the accused #RPFJawan become a future BJP candidate? Will his bail be supported by the govt? Will he be garlanded when released? Happy to be proven wrong #JaipurMumbaiExpress.”

According to the GRP, Singh fired 12 rounds from his automatic weapon. Another senior police official said the accused RPF constable was very shorttempered. (PTI)