Train firing: Police oppose ex-RPF constable's bail plea; cite death sentence potential in case

Mumbai, Dec 8 (PTI) The police on Monday opposed the bail plea of former RPF constable Chetansinh Chaudhary, held for shooting dead his senior colleague and three passengers on a moving train, saying the allegations against him were of serious nature with potential for a death sentence.

Material witnesses are being examined and sufficient material has been brought on record, which is a substantive piece of evidence against the accused, the written response said.

The reply, filed through additional public prosecutor Sudhir Sapkale, emphasised that bail at this juncture would prejudice the prosecution's case.

Chaudhary is accused of shooting dead his senior colleague, Assistant Sub-Inspector Tika Ram Meena, and three passengers on board the Jaipur-Mumbai Central Superfast Express near Palghar railway station in Maharashtra on July 31, 2023.

In his bail plea, through advocates Amit Mishra and Pankaj Ghildiyal, the accused claimed he was suffering from "white matter disease", which involves damage or degeneration of the brain's white matter.

"The accused is suffering from extreme mental strokes, and he is a partial mental patient / mentally challenged, who sometimes becomes whimsical and goes into the loop of illusions, and the accused is suffering from delusional disorder," his plea had said.

The bail application claimed "whatever the crime occurred, the accused does not have any knowledge of the same".

However, the prosecution stressed that the ground of ill health "is not considerable at this point".

"The grounds mentioned in the bail applications of the accused do not inspire confidence," it added.

In a related development, the wife of one of the victims sought the court's nod to be heard during the bail proceedings.

In the intervention plea, filed through advocates Karim Pathan and Fazlurrahman Shaikh, she stated "there is direct evidence against the accused, including eyewitnesses, recovery of weapon, cartridges etc." This is not a fit case for bail, the intervention plea contended, adding there are chances of Chaudhary tampering and hampering with the evidence and investigation.

Meanwhile, a RPF constable who was part of the team that caught Chaudhary, deposed as witness on Monday.

The witness told the court that when he first saw the accused walking on the tracks between Mira Road and Dahisar railway stations, Chaudhary threatened to shoot him.

After getting a call from a senior officer, the witness along with other team members went to look for the accused.

The constable, who was posted at Mira Road station then, testified that when he was walking towards Dahisar he spotted one policeman in uniform (with a rifle) coming from the other side.

"I asked him who are you, where is your duty and why he alighted from the train and where are you going? But he didn't respond," the witness said.

"Instead Chaudhary stared at me and said don't come in my way or follow me, otherwise I will shoot you," the witness recalled.

Seeing the accused touch his rifle, the witness made way for him, but kept following him from a distance.

Further the witness testified that the accused was eventually caught on a footover bridge at Mira Road station. PTI AVI BNM