Just four days after its inaugural run, stones were pelted at the Howrah-New Jalpaiguri Vande Bharat Express in West Bengal’s Malda district. The incident took place at Kumarganj railway station, around 50 km from Malda town, on Monday evening, reported PTI. The incident has led to a political row in the state, with the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party demanding a probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
A railway official said that no injuries were reported, and the glass door of coach number C 13 of 22303 Vande Bharat Express, which was flagged-off virtually by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Howrah station on December 30, was damaged.
The incident took place at around 5 PM, but the train did not stop mid-way after the incident, and halted at its designated stop at Malda railway station. Malda Town railway station Government Railway Police (GRP) IC Prashant Rai said that Railway Protection Force (RPF) is investigating the matter.
A case has been registered against unidentified persons under section 154 of the Railways Act, The Indian Railways said, reported ANI.
Meanwhile, calling the incident “sickening”, Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari wondered if this was “revenge” for chants of “Jai Shri Ram” on the inaugural day.
Earlier, BJP workers had raised ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogans at the inauguration programme in Howrah station, following which West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee refused to get up on the dais from where the train was flagged off.
Attempts by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose to pacify her did not bear fruit, as she chose to sit on a chair below the dais along with the audience.
Following the stone-pelting incident, Adhikari demanded an NIA investigation into the case.
“Unfortunate & sickening. Stones pelted at India’s pride Vande Bharat Express in WB’s Malda district. Is this revenge for ‘Jai Shree Ram’ chants on the Inaugural day? I urge @PMOIndia & @RailMinIndia to handover the probe to @NIA_India & punish the perpetrators. @AshwiniVaishnaw,” the BJP leader tweeted on Monday.
On Tuesday, State General Secretary and Trinamool Congress spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said that the party condemns the stone-pelting incident, and demanded a thorough investigation.
Attaching a media report clipping which read that a Vande Bharat Express train was vandalised in Uttar Pradesh, he said that the same incident occurred in UP thrice, asking if it was a “preplanned conspiracy to provoke cheap politics”.
He said that the incident must be probed in an unbiased manner.
