July 2023 train firing: Trial begins as Mumbai court records testimony of 1st witness
Mumbai (PTI): Fifteen months after four persons were gunned down on a Mumbai-bound train allegedly by a RPF constable, the case trial has commenced with a city court recording the testimony of the first witness, who identified the weapon used in the crime.
RPF constable Chetansinh Chaudhary, the lone accused in the case who was later dismissed from service, is accused of fatally shooting his superior officer Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Tika Ram Meena and three passengers on board the Jaipur-Mumbai Central Superfast Express when the train was on the city's outskirts on July 31, 2023.
The first witness, also a dismissed Railway Protection Force (RPF) staffer, was with Chaudhary at the time of the shooting. He is also the complainant in the case.
On the opening day of the trial on Monday, the evidence presented by the complainant was recorded before Additional Sessions Judge M L More.
During the examination-in-chief, the witness identified the weapon used in the crime (examination-in-chief refers to process of questioning a witness by the party who has called them to testify).
As per Chaudhary's lawyer Jaywant Patil, the testimony of the witness was recorded in the absence of the accused as he couldn't be connected through video conferencing from a jail due to technical reasons.
Chaudhary is lodged in a jail in eastern Maharashtra's Akola district, about 550 km from Mumbai.
The witness will be cross-examined by defence lawyers on November 27, the next day of hearing.
Chaudhary has been charged under Indian Penal Code sections 302 (murder), 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc) and others, as well as relevant provisions of the Railways Act and the Maharashtra Prevention Of Defacement of Property Act.
The shooting took place at around 5 am on July 31, 2023, on board the moving Jaipur-Mumbai Central Superfast Express when the train was near Palghar railway station.
Chaudhary (34) was nabbed along with his weapon while trying to flee after passengers pulled the chain of the train which stopped near Mira Road station (on the Mumbai suburban network).
According to police, Chaudhary shot dead ASI Meena and another passenger in B5 coach with his automatic weapon.
He then fired at another passenger in the train's pantry car and one more person in S6 coach located next to the buffet car, killing both of them.
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Have won in people’s court, says Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on by-poll results
Bengaluru (PTI): Buoyed by the assembly election by-polls, which saw the ruling Congress sweeping in all the three seats, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said he won in the ‘people’s court’.
He gave credit to the guarantee schemes for the party’s victory in the assembly bypolls in Sandur, Shiggaon and Channapatna.
“You know what Mahatma Gandhi said. He said people’s court is better than the courts. Now people’s court has given me its verdict,” Siddaramaiah told reporters.
This victory was significant for the Congress as the BJP and JD(S) formed an alliance, he explained.
“We won from Kalyana Karnataka (Sandur), Kittur Karnataka region (Shiggaon), and old Mysuru region (Channapatna). In all the places we won. So, this is very significant."
“After our government came to power about one and half years ago, the BJP made false allegations on me and my government. They also spread lies about our schemes,” Siddaramaiah said.
The CM is an accused in the MUDA site allotment scam where 14 sites in upmarket of Mysuru was allotted to his wife, Parvathi. After the controversy broke out, Parvathi returned the sites to MUDA.
He also came down heavily on the opposition BJP and JD(S) for their lies and ‘baseless allegations’.
The Chief Minister also took a swipe at JDS supremo H D Deve Gowda and his son Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy for "crying" in public during elections.
“Deve Gowda and his sons cry, but didn’t their heart melt when several women cried in the Prajwal Revanna case in Hassan?” he asked.
Former JD(S) MP and grandson of former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, Prajwal Revanna is in jail for allegedly sexually assaulting several women and filming them.
