No arrests yet in Duronto theft case
Patna: Two days after a daring theft on the New Delhi-Bhubaneswar Duronto Express (12282), no arrests have yet been made. Valuables worth lakhs of more than 12 passengers, including women, were stolen in five coaches on Thursday night.
The thieves escaped unchallenged by pulling the alarm chain between Paraiya and Kastha near Gaya, along the DDU-Gaya Grand Chord section of East Central Railway (ECR).
The absence of security on board has drawn widespread criticism. "How can such a premier train be allowed to pass through a known vulnerable zone without any security personnel on board?" asked one victim, Suchi Smita, in her statement to police. "If there had been an RPF escort party, this incident would not have occurred," she added.
Preliminary investigations suggest that CCTV cameras inside the AC coaches were either not working or failed to record during the incident. Several passengers questioned the absence of TTEs and coach attendants at the time. "It felt like we were abandoned. We kept asking – where are the TTEs, where is the security? We were just left to our fate," the passengers told police. "The fear and helplessness were worse than the loss itself," they added.
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An RPF team led by Rafiganj inspector Ramshuber is examining footage from CCTV cameras at DDU station, from where the gang is believed to have boarded the train. "All possible efforts are being made to get clues to the criminals' exact identities and modus operandi for crimes on such a premier train," the RPF inspector said.
Gaya GRP inspector Rajesh Kumar Singh said raids were being conducted at hideouts of known 'luggage lifters'. "No exact clue has been found yet, but investigations are progressing in the right direction," he said.
Meanwhile, the incident has left passengers traumatised and sparked renewed demands for overhauling security protocols on overnight express trains passing through crime-prone zones.
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