Railways may take a relook at firearms policy for RPF

MUMBAI: The carnage on the Jaipur-Mumbai superfast train that left four dead may force a rethink on the policy on equipping Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel with firearms in such large numbers during train escort duty.

Four personnel were on the escort team and a modified version of the AK-47 rifle, the AR-M1, was allocated to two constables, including the accused, Chetan Singh who fired 12 rounds of bullets. Assistant sub-inspector Tikaram Meena, among the four victims, and constable Narendra Parmar were in possession of revolvers with 10 rounds of bullets each.