Two Arrested in Botad for Attempted Train Derailment

Two individuals, Ramesh Salia and Jayesh Bavalia, were arrested in Gujarat's Botad district for allegedly attempting to derail a train to rob passengers. They plotted this crime due to financial struggles, using YouTube for guidance. Following their failed attempt, the National Investigation Agency and Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad were involved in the investigation.

Two persons were arrested on Tuesday for allegedly placing an iron rail piece on a railway track in an attempt to derail a train for robbing passengers in Gujarat's Botad district, police said.

The accused, Ramesh Salia and Jayesh Bavalia, allegedly placed a four to five-foot-long iron rail piece vertically on the track near Kundli village on September 25, an official stated.

The duo allegedly planned to derail coaches and rob passengers as they were facing financial difficulties, he said.

Botad is around 150 km from Ahmedabad.

As per a release issued by the Botad district police, the accused watched YouTube videos about ways to derail trains before committing the crime.

The engine of the Okha-Bhavnagar passenger train came to a halt after hitting the iron rail piece in the early hours of September 25. The accused, who are farm laborers, were waiting in a cotton field nearby, officials reported.

When their plan failed, they fled on their two-wheeler, police said.

Given the serious nature of the crime, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) were called in to aid the local police teams, police mentioned.

The authorities utilized technical surveillance and human intelligence to apprehend the two men, who initially went into hiding, as per the report.

The duo were subsequently interrogated and booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, Railways Act, and Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.

The incident follows the recent arrest of three railway employees in Surat district for alleged track tampering and falsely alerting authorities of a sabotage attempt to gain credit for preventing a potential tragedy.