As per reports, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested three railway officials in the tragic triple train crash in Odisha, which claimed the lives of more than 290 passengers. The arrested individuals have been identified as Arun Kumar Mahanta, a senior section engineer; Mohammad Amir Khan, a section engineer; and Pappu Kumar, a technician.

According to the CBI, the accused have been apprehended under sections 304 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code for their alleged actions that contributed to the incident. The specific details of their involvement have not been disclosed.

Notably, these stringent sections pertaining to culpable homicide and destruction of evidence were added to the case by the CBI after a month-long investigation. It is worth mentioning that these sections were not initially included in the first information report (FIR) filed by the CBI, which was a re-registration of the Odisha police case.

Recent developments occurred following the submission of the Commissioner of Railways Safety (CRS) report on the Balasore accident to the railway board. The investigation revealed faulty signalling caused by two unsuccessful repair works—one in 2018 and one shortly before the accident—as the primary reason for the collision between the Coromandel Express and goods train on a separate track.

 The CRS report, obtained by HT, stated, "The rear-collision (of Coromandel Express) was due to lapses in the signalling-circuit-alteration carried out... in the past and during the execution of the signalling work related to replacement of electric lifting barrier for level crossing gate number 94 at the station."

To ensure that the ongoing CBI investigation remains uninfluenced and free from interference, the Railways has chosen not to publicly release the CRS probe report on the Balasore triple train accident, according to officials familiar with the matter.

Image source: outlook India