The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested three railway employees in connection with the Balasore train accident that took place on June 2, 2023. The accident claimed the lives of over 290 passengers and injured over 1,100.
The arrested employees are:
Senior Section Engineer Arun Kumar Mohanta
Section Engineer Mohammad Amir Khan
Technician Pappu Kumar
The CBI has booked them under sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 201 (destruction of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). They have also been charged under section 153 of the Railways Act, 1989.
The CBI's investigation has found that the accident was caused due to the negligence of the railway employees. They had failed to maintain the signals properly, which led to the two trains colliding.
The CBI will now produce the arrested employees before a special magistrate on Saturday to seek their police custody. Their custodial interrogation will begin after that.
The Balasore train accident was one of the deadliest train accidents in India in recent years. The CBI's arrest of the three railway employees is a step in the right direction to bring the guilty to justice.
