Agra (UP), Aug 20: Two passengers died and six fell sick on board the Patna-Kota Express train on Sunday, officials said. It was not immediately known what led to the deaths.

They were part of a group of 90 passengers from Raipur in Chhattisgarh. Five of the six people who feel sick were undergoing treatment at a railway hospital in Agra while the sixth was admitted to the S N Medical College.

North Central Railway PRO in Agra Division Prashasti Srivastava told PTI, "A call was received on the railway helpline number about the passengers...falling sick. They were travelling in an AC coach. A woman aged about 62 years and a man aged nearly 65 were declared dead by the doctor at the Agra Cantt Railway Station. Five passengers from the same group are being treated at (hospitals)."

She said the cause of death was not known yet.

Asked if it was a case of food poisoning or dehydration, she said, "It will be known after the postmortem."

On whether they were given poison-laced sweets by a criminal gang known as "zeher khurani", she said there was no such complaint.

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Lucknow (PTI): Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Friday criticised the central government for "rushing" the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, saying that the legislation should have been introduced only after addressing people's concerns and clarifying doubts.

Her remarks came after the Rajya Sabha passed the Bill late Thursday night, a day after its approval in the Lok Sabha, where the opposition strongly opposed it.

"After listening to both the ruling party and the opposition in Parliament on the Waqf Amendment Bill, the conclusion is that if the central government had given the public more time to understand the Bill and addressed all their concerns before bringing it forward, it would have been better," Mayawati posted on X in Hindi.

The BSP leader further expressed disappointment over what she termed as the government's "haste" in passing the Bill.

"It is unfortunate that the government hurriedly introduced and passed this Bill, which is not appropriate. Now that it has been passed, if governments misuse it, then the BSP will stand firmly with the Muslim community. In other words, the party does not support this Bill," she added.