INTRODUCTION
The worst tragedy to occur since 1995 took place recently around 6:56 P.M. last Friday, at Bahanaga Baazar Station in Odisha’s Balasore. Several compartments of the Shalimar-Chennai Express were sent hurdling over the tracks as it rammed into a freight train that was said to be bearing iron ore, as per the latest reports.
The situation further escalated with the Yashwantpur-Howrah Super-Fast Express headed towards Howrah went crashing into the remains of the initial collision. The incident killed about two hundred and seventy-eight people and gravely injured as many as a thousand and one hundred passengers.
SUSPICIONS
Though it cannot be concluded with one hundred percent certainty that the horrifying event was indeed an “accident”, many conspire that the cause of the events that unfolded in Balasore is suspiciously well timed in the midst of a political turmoil between the government and the people, and that sabotage cannot be ruled out from the potential causes of the gruesome occurrence.
These suspicions of a possible attempt at sabotage and the idea of an event such as this being the result of a cleverly orchestrated attempt to divert attention shines a cruel light on the case and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has reportedly been called upon, by the Railway Board, according to Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, for a probe into the accident to figure out if this is more than an unfortunate natural disaster and if so, who is responsible for such a gross act of violence and evil against humanity.
CBI TO CONDUCT THOROUGH EXAMINATION OF EVENTS
Evidence collected from the site of the accident is going to be thoroughly examined by experts from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) and the investigators of the agency. They are also disclosed to be going through documents from the Railway Ministry along with recording statements from the victims of the case and witnesses including the staff who were employed at the Railway, local authorities, onlookers, and those who aided in rescue operations, examining them in order to get to the bottom of the case and they have been assured anonymity in exchange for the information.
The case for this matter was taken over by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) last Friday, and a team was available on the accident site by Tuesday to investigate further into the matter of the probe into the Triple-Train Crash Tragedy in Odisha’s Balasore. The Central Bureau of Investigation assures the people that it will not leave any space for suspicion and will view the matter from every possible angle, including suspicions of deliberate human intervention or human errors that may have occurred ultimately resulting in the passing of this horrific event.
The case was registered by the Central Bureau as per a request by the Ministry of Railways, orders from the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), and consent from the Odisha Government to look at the matter related to the train accident that transpired on the second of June, 2023. According to a Central Bureau of Investigation spokesperson, the case numbered sixty-four, was initially registered by the Balasore Railway Government Police (GRP) in Cuttack, Odisha.
The main witnesses of the events that unfolded that day include the Assistant Station Master and the drivers of both trains that crashed together. These witnesses had already been questioned by the Railway Authorities as to the details of the case. Through this preliminary investigation and questioning by the Railway Authorities it was found that the inter-connected intricate system of safety mechanisms designed to keep the trains from crossing paths with each other were found to be changed resulting in the accident between the Shalimar-Chennai Express, the Yashwantpur-Howrah Super-Fast Express and the freight train carrying iron-ore, killing over two-hundred and injuring over a thousand people.