Thiruvananthapuram, April 3 (IANS) The Kerala police on Monday claimed to have received vital clues regarding the unidentified man who set his co-passengers afire inside a moving Kannur-bound train.
“As we have got vital clues, the case will be cracked soon. Once I reach Kannur, we will form a special investigation team to make a detailed probe into it. The IG of Police, North Zone has already started the work,” said State Police chief Anil Kant Kant while leaving for Kannur.
Similarly, national agencies like the NIA have also initiated a preliminary probe into the incident.
On Sunday night, three passengers who are believed to have jumped off the Alappuzha-Kannur Executive Express, were found dead on the track. A two-year-old and his aunt were among the deceased.
According to sources, when the train was about to cross the Korapuzha bridge between Kozhikode and Kannur stretch around 9.30 pm, a middle-aged man sprayed petrol on passengers and set them ablaze.
Nine other passengers, who suffered burn injuries, are undergoing treatment at a Kozhikode hospital, where the condition of three is stated to be serious.
Passengers who witnessed the gruesome incident said the culprit was a bearded man in a red-coloured shirt. He came from the D2 compartment into the D1 compartment and committed the crime.
Soon after the incident, other passengers pulled the chain and stopped the train.
The accused then jumped off the train and disappeared under the cover of darkness.
This morning, the CCTV footage showed the accused riding pillion on a bike around 50 metres away from where he jumped off the train.
A bag and a switched off mobile phone were recovered from the spot.
The bag contained a piece of paper with a note in English and Hindi about places in nearby Thiruvananthapuram and Kanyakumari. It also had a pair of dress, spectacles, and a bottle containing petrol.
State BJP president K.Surendran said the CCTV visuals indicate that it is the handiwork of anti-national forces. A detailed probe has to be carried out.
Based on the CCTV footage and witnesses, the police is expected to release a picture of the suspect soon, as per sources
–IANS
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