Kannur, April 3: Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president and Kannur MP, K Sudhakaran on Monday asked Union Railway Minister Ashwin Vaishnaw to order a comprehensive probe into the Kozhikode train incident, and provide solatium to the next of kin of the deceased people and the injured victims.
Three people were killed and nine others suffered burn injuries when a youth allegedly poured petrol on co-passengers and set to afire the reserved coach (D1) of the moving Alappuzha- Kannur Executive express at Ealthur on Sunday night.
Sudhakaran in a letter to the railway minister described the incident as “deeply concerning”, and said “it raises serious questions about the safety and security of passengers traveling on trains in our country”.
“It is a matter of great urgency that an immediate and thorough inquiry is conducted to determine how such a horrific incident could have taken place and what measures can be taken to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future.
Moreover, it is important that the culprits responsible for this heinous act are brought to justice swiftly. The passengers and their families who were affected by this tragedy deserve nothing less than justice. I would also like to urge you to ensure that adequate compensation is provided to the families of the deceased and to those who were injured in this incident,” he said in the missive.
Iteratng that it is the responsibility of the government to ensure that citizens are safe while traveling on public transportation, he said the incident highlights the need for urgent action to improve the safety and security of railway passengers.
Meanwhile, BJP State president K Surendran demanded a detailed probe into the incident and suspected that anti-national forces were behind it.
Opposition leader V D Satheeshan demanded a joint probe with State and Central agencies to provide confidence to train passengers.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Business Upturn staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
