Ticketless ‘godman' kicked off train, tampers with rails
Chennai: "Godmen don't need to buy tickets. I was kicked off trains for not having one. That's why I tried to sabotage them," said a man arrested for tampering with rail tracks in Tamil Nadu and Telangana.
The successive instances of sabotage between April 26 and 29 at Avadi, Ambattur and Arakkonam had triggered nationwide alarm and the NIA too had joined the investigation.
The culprit, however, turned out to be a 43-year-old Class XII dropout from Odisha who claimed to be a godman. The man, who styled himself as 'Om from Haridwar on a spiritual journey' believed godmen didn't require tickets, because they were above such rules.
He was caught in Hyderabad two weeks ago after he tampered with the tracks between Kacheguda and Budvel and his game was up.
TN's Govt Railway Police flew to Haridwar but found no record of an 'Om' there. Instead, they found his real name was Vijaykumar and that he was drifter who worked as an electrician in several states before staying at a mutt near Tiruttani. That's where he assumed the persona of a godman and believed he didn't need a ticket to ride.
"He said he placed metal objects and stones on railway tracks, angry at being thrown off trains for not having a ticket," said GRP superintendent I Eswaran.
It was just providence that his actions did not result in a tragedy. At Arakkonam, metal rods and stones were wedged across six rail joints. An accident as averted only because the loco pilot of the Tirupati-Puducherry Express noticed a signal anomaly and halted the train in time.
The pattern became clear only after his arrest. He was brought to Chennai on a transit remand last week. He is now remanded in judicial custody and lodged in Puzhal prison.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
10 hours ago
- The Hindu
GRP seizes 35 kg ganja at Jolarpet railway station
The Government Railway Police (GRP) has seized a consignment of 35 kgs of ganja in Hatiya - SMVT Bengaluru Super Fast Express train at Jolarpet railway station in Tirupattur on Saturday. Police said that as part of security measures, a team of RPF police personnel was conducting surprise checks in halted trains at the railway station. The express train, which was on its way to Chennai, halted at the railway station. The team searched coaches of the express train where they found three abandoned tourist bags in the general compartment of the train. When they opened the bags, they found around 15 packets that contained 25 kgs of ganja. Initial inquiry revealed that a gang of four persons got down at the railway station after they noticed a police team getting into the train to search the coaches. They abandoned the consignment in the train and fled the spot. A case has been registered by Jolarpet RPF. Police are analysing the CCTV footage to nab the gang that was allegedly involved in ganja smuggling.
Hindustan Times
11 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Passenger in UP beaten to death over seat dispute in moving train
A 39-year-old man was allegedly beaten to death by a group of 15 to 20 men aboard a moving train late Friday night. The victim, Deepak Yadav, was returning to his hometown of Baghpat from Delhi when he was attacked during the Saharanpur-Delhi passenger train's journey near Fakharpur railway station. According to police, the fatal assault began following a dispute over a seat and continued for nearly 10 km, from Fakharpur to Khekra station. Baghpat-bound passenger thrashed for 10 km, probe underway; 5 arrested (Sourced) Witnesses said the attackers used belts, fists and kicks while some passengers attempted to intervene. The assailants reportedly fled before the train stopped. Government railway police (GRP) officials confirmed that Deepak was taken off the train and rushed to a hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival. His companion on the train had informed police and family members soon after the attack began. 'An FIR has been registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Section 191(2) for rioting and Section 103 for murder. Five youths have been arrested and are being questioned. The post-mortem report will help determine whether sharp-edged weapons were used in the assault. Efforts are underway to identify and apprehend the remaining accused,' Udham Singh Talan, GRP Inspector of Baraut section, Baghpat, said. Deepak, a resident of Mohalla Ahiran in Khekra town, had been employed for 15 years at a chandelier showroom in Bhagirath Palace, Delhi. He is survived by his wife Savitri, daughter Ayushi, and son Aviral. He was the only son of his parents and routinely travelled home every weekend. Several videos recorded by passengers emerged on Saturday, capturing the sequence of the assault. In one video, the victim is purportedly seen being attacked while some individuals try to stop the mob. Another clip shows a group beating Deepak with belts inside the crowded compartment. A shorter video shows the accused jumping off the train near Khekra. The footage is now a key part of the ongoing investigation. Police are reviewing the recordings to identify the attackers and their escape route. Deepak's neighbour, Rajveer Singh, told police that the victim had no history of conflict but mentioned an earlier scuffle involving some of Deepak's colleagues. Though Deepak was not present during that incident, police suspect the same group may have targeted him. According to family members, the attack appears to have been premeditated. Deepak's maternal uncle, Subhash Yadav, alleged that the mob was led by a man identified as Rahul Baba from Basi village. He claimed that the attackers, who frequently travelled on the same route, recognised Deepak when he was alone and launched the assault. 'He was travelling with co-workers who got off at Fakharpur. Moments later, he was surrounded and attacked. We believe they used sharp weapons,' Subhash said.
India Today
12 hours ago
- India Today
How a trail of rifles from Dimapur to Muzaffarpur exposed India's hidden arms corridor
When the National Investigation Agency (NIA) lodged a supplementary chargesheet against four Bihar residents for gunrunning, it tore asunder the velvet curtain on a clandestine arms pipeline. The NIA probe revealed how military-grade weapons slipped from the misty bazaars of Nagaland into the hands of Naxalite insurgents and ruthless criminal syndicates across Bihar and four suppliers have been arrested so far, and transactions totalling Rs 58 lakh traced to two bank accounts—but who can say how many more shadowy figures prowl Bihar's underbelly, trading death for profit?advertisementThe platform seizureThe saga began in May 2024, when Muzaffarpur Rail Police stopped two young men—Vikash Kumar and Satyam Kumar—on the station platform and found on them the butt and optical scope of an AK-47. The two confessed to supplying a complete AK-47 rifle and five rounds of ammunition to Devmani Rai. A raid at Rai's safe house yielded the weapon and cartridges, and two days later the net closed on yet another operative: Ahmed Ansari, traced to Dimapur in Nagaland. Financial forensicsInvestigators soon uncovered a web of pecuniary evidence. Rai's Muzaffarpur bank account showed inflows of Rs 38 lakh between April 2022 and April 2024, while an IDFC First Bank account in Dimapur, held by Ansari, received deposits of Rs 20 lakh from March 2023 to April 2024. These sums, investigators believe, underpinned the procurement and shipment of prohibited breadcrumbsFive mobile phones—seized from Kumar, Ansari and a co-accused—proved equally illuminating. A report from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory in New Delhi confirmed photographs of an AK-47, a Beretta pistol and an Austrian-made Glock, alongside images of an unidentified individual and railway tickets for journeys between Muzaffarpur and Dimapur. Call-detail records further mapped a tight network of communication linking all four suspects, who shared a common contact in one Ranjeet Das of shadow marketDimapur, Nagaland's commercial heart, has long been a nexus for licit trade and contraband alike. Its porous frontiers—with Myanmar to the east and Assam's plains to the west—have enabled insurgent groups to source arms via local fixers. Investigators now believe Ansari tapped this very network, purchasing genuine AK-47 components for cash and dispatching them by rail, concealed among mechanical spares or agriculture equipment—cargo that seldom attracts December raidsSeven months after the initial arrest, the NIA conducted searches at 17 locations in December 2024—six in Bihar alone. In Mankauli village, Muzaffarpur district, agents searched the home of panchayat chief Nand Kishore Yadav (aka Bhola Rai), seizing ledgers, walkie-talkies and lakhs in cash.A network of fixersAt the heart of this operation were not hardened militants but local functionaries, including an elected panchayat head, tasked with safe-keeping rifle parts, arranging forged permits and coordinating payments. Bhola Rai's ledger listed payments in lakhs to shell firms in Nagaland; municipal records from Parsa hinted that local funds were diverted to accounts linked to Ansari's network. These intermediaries lacked ideological motive, instead viewing arms trafficking as a lucrative commercial interstate arms corridorTaken together, these findings expose a far-reaching pipeline: prohibited arms procured in Dimapur's shadow markets, ferried into Bihar via India's vast rail and road networks, and distributed to insurgents and criminal syndicates alike. Eastern India's border states—West Bengal, Assam, Nagaland and Meghalaya—serve as entry points for smuggled weapons and explosives, which then transit to the Gangetic plains, fuelling pockets of extremist and reflectionToday, as the NIA continues to sift through terabytes of mobile-phone data and financial logs, one question looms large: how did AK-47 components traverse hundreds of kilometres unchecked? The four accused now languish in jail, facing charges under the Arms Act and, since May, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Yet, for security analysts, the true victory will be sealing the systemic gaps that allowed this pipeline to findings expose a far-reaching pipeline: prohibited arms procured in Dimapur's shadow markets, ferried into Bihar via India's vast rail and road networks, and distributed to insurgents and criminal syndicates alike. The couriers travelled not just by train, but also in a black Mahindra Thar—registered under the name of Devmani Rai's mother—its bulky frame offering an unremarkable disguise for smuggling weapons and ferrying cash. It was a calculated use of middle-class respectability to mask underworld the Bihar election on the horizon and security forces braced for more cross-border arms inflows, the Muzaffarpur–Dimapur saga stands as a stark reminder: India's decades-long struggle against internal insurgency no longer plays out solely in remote jungles or rugged hills—it courses along rail tracks and highways, threading through villages, municipalities and even courtrooms. At every junction, it demands sharper vigilance, deeper coordination and an unwavering resolve to confront the traffickers who profit from to India Today Magazine
