Odisha Train Accident: 5 Railway Employees Picked Up By CBI For Interrogation

Balasore: Stepping up its probe into the horrific triple train accident at Bahanaga in Odisha’s Balasore district, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) reportedly picked up five railways employees on Monday for questioning.

The premier central investigating agency has been probing the deadly accident that took place on June 2 claiming the lives of at least 288 people and leaving more than 1100 injured.

Sources said that the CBI sleuths have taken to five employees of the South Eastern Railway to some undisclosed location for interrogation. They include an Assistant Station Manager who was present at Bahanaga Bazar Railway Station at the time of the accident and four staffers of the Signal department.

While CBI officials are tight-lipped about the ongoing investigation and interrogation of railway employees, reports said that the five are being questioned about the sequence of events before the tragic accident that took place on June 2 evening.

After the central agency took over the probe into the accident, its officials have been examining different aspects to ascertain the circumstances that led to the horrific crash. Apart from examining possible technical  glitches and signalling error, they are also trying to ascertain whether there was any conspiracy behind the tragedy.

It may be noted that the CBI officials have already seized the mobile phones of some railway employees to examine their call records, WhatsApp messages and social media usage.

Apart from visiting the accident site along with forensic and technical teams, the CBI officials have also questioned the train loco pilots as part of the investigation.

It may be noted here that at least 288 people were killed and more than 1100 injured in the deadly accident involving Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express and Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express and a goods train that took place on June 2 at Bahanaga in Balasore district.