The CBI has filed charges against three railway personnel who were previously arrested in connection with the Balasore train catastrophe, which killed about 290 people and injured hundreds more. Arun Kumar Mahanta, Md Amir Khan, and Pappu Kumar, three railway employees, have been charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder and evidence destruction.
The three railway officials were detained in July, a month after numerous trains crashed in Odisha’s Balasore due to a possible signal failure, killing about 290 people in the worst train tragedy in Indian Railways history.
The CBI detained Arun Kumar Mahanta, senior section engineer, Mohammad Amir Khan, section engineer, and technician Pappu Kumar for their roles in the catastrophe. They were all detained under Indian Penal Code sections 304 and 201.
A Coromandel Express, a Yeshwantpur-Howrah Express traveling in opposite directions, and a cargo train parked at Balasore’s Bahanaga Bazar railway station were all involved in the multiple train crash.
According to the CBI, Mahanta repaired the level crossing gate number 94 near Bahanaga Bazar station using the circuit design of LC gate number 79. The accused’s responsibility was to guarantee that the existing signal and interlocking installations were tested, overhauled, and altered in line with the approved plan and instructions, which he did not accomplish.