1 arrested in Moradabad for hurling petrol bombs at express trains; accused says he saw his deceased brother in dream

Indian Express

3 days ago

A joint team of the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and the Government Railway Police (GRP) recently arrested a man in Moradabad for allegedly hurling petrol bombs at express trains.
The accused has been identified as e-rickshaw driver Deepu Saini, a resident of the Civil Lines area in Moradabad.
According to Anil Kumar Verma, Circle Officer (CO), GRP, the accused was caught on August 1 following increased surveillance after two recent incidents of suspected arson targeting express trains in the region.
'On July 31, we received information about a fire-like situation in a train compartment caused by a bottle containing some flammable substance. When our teams reached (the spot), we could not find anything concrete,' said Verma.
'But the very next day, another similar bottle was hurled at a train. That's when we realised someone was challenging us deliberately and was throwing these bottles repeatedly to damage trains,' he added.
Thereafter, a joint RPF-GRP team was deployed in plain clothes in the surrounding areas. On August 1, the railway police spotted a man in an e-rickshaw descending a bridge, clutching a bottle wrapped in cloth. They then chased him down and arrested him.
'He (the accused) was carrying a petrol-filled glass bottle sealed with cloth and then topped with a cap, Rs 560 in cash, a few coins, a pouch of M-seal, and a matchbox,' said Verma.
The police said Saini told them during the interrogation that he was acting based on a dream.
'He told us that in his dream, his brother, who had died by suicide earlier this year, appeared and said he had been harassed by people. Saini believed this dream was a message, and… he had to take revenge by harming train passengers,' Verma said.
The police said they were verifying the accused's mental health condition and also probing the circumstances that led to his brother's death.
'We're speaking to the family and the local police in Civil Lines to understand what happened with his brother. Only after that can we piece together the full picture,' Verma added.
So far, the police have linked Saini to at least two instances of petrol bomb attacks – one targeting the Champaran Satyagraha Express and another unconfirmed incident on July 31.