Staff Reporter
An unnatural death (UD) case has been filed over the train accident in Brahmanbaria’s Kasba that left at least 16 people dead and more than 100 injured.
Jaker Hossain Chowdhury, Mandabagh Railway Station Master, filed the case with Akhaura General Railway Police on Tuesday night, said Shaymol Kanti Das, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of the GRP.
Meanwhile, after the fatal train crash, the driver and his assistant of the intercity ‘Turna Nishita’ train went to the Akhaura Health Complex by an ambulance in the guise of injured passengers and then fled away.
Driver (Loco Master) Taher Uddin, 55, and his assistant Apu Dey, 35, went to the health complex by an ambulance soon after the accident and stayed in a cabin for sometime. Later, they both left the health complex without informing anyone.
Taher and Apu left Dhaka on Wednesday for Chattogram to give their statements before another probe committee formed by Bangladesh Railway’s East Zone, reports media.
At first, they claimed themselves as passengers of one of the ill-fated trains and refused to talk to the correspondent. After repeated questions, Apu Dey said,”Please, let us stay alone. We’re devastated.”
On the other hand, a disappointed Taher Uddin was slapping forehead with his hand.
The health complex’s ambulance driver Tajul Islam said, a number of injured have been brought here from the accident spot. Of them, five were shifted to Brahmanbaria Sadar Hospital and two admitted to the health complex. But, I did not recognise them. I, came to know their identities following media reports.”
An official of BR East Zone, who took part in the rescue operation, told the Daily Observer that loco master Taher Uddin and his assistant Apu Dey might have fallen asleep after keeping the locomotive on auto-braking mode.
He also said that Turna Nishitha was given three signals, but, it was not clear why none of the two drivers saw any signal.
Replying to a question about the drivers’ whereabouts, Dhaka Locoshed In-charge engineer M Alauddin said both Taher and Apu were present before a probe committee in Dhaka on Tuesday night. They left Dhaka for Chattogram to give their statement before another probe body.
Earlier, at least 16 people were killed and more than 100 others injured in a collision between two passenger trains – namely ‘Udayan Express’ and ‘Turna Nishitha’ at the crossing of Mandabhag Station in Kasba upazila of Brahmanbaria around 2:45am on Tuesday.
