Gazipur train accident: '20 feet of rail track removed by saboteurs'

Seven coaches of Dhaka-bound Mohanganj Express veered off the tracks in Gazipur today. Photo: Collected

A 20-foot stretch of rail track was deliberately removed by unidentified saboteurs, leading to the derailment of the Dhaka-bound Mohanganj Express in Gazipur early today, police and district administration said.

"Twenty feet of rail track was cut off … It is an act of sabotage," Abul Fateh Mohammad Shafiqul Islam, deputy commissioner of Gazipur district, told reporters after visiting the spot.

Anwar Hossain, superintendent of Dhaka Railway Police, also said the cutting off of the rail track caused the accident around 4:00am today, killing one person and injuring several others.

"It is a subversive activity carried out to cause harm to train passengers and damage government property. We think pro-blockade supporters did it," he told reporters on the spot.

"We will be able to identify and arrest those involved in the incident," he said, adding that apart from railway police, district police and intelligence wings were also working in this regard.

Police and district administration officials said they recovered two gas cylinders which were used to power gas cutters to severe the section of the track.

The incident occurred on the second day of the 36-hour blockade called by BNP and its allies to protest announcement of the election schedule.

BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said it was definitely an act of sabotage. He condemned the attack and expressed deep concern over the death and injury of the passengers.

In a press release issued by the party, the BNP leader demanded immediate arrest of those involved and a judicial probe into the incident.

"Those who carried it out are enemies of humanity," he said.

He also said that one or two media outlets were blaming the derailment on parties waging pro-democracy movements.

Terming it as a deep conspiracy, he said, "This proves, and people believe it too, that this kind of sabotage was conducted in a well-planned manner."

Immediately after the accident, train service on the Dhaka-Mymensingh route was suspended. Railway authorities later resumed service through an alternative route via Tongi.