On Wednesday, April 5, Kerala Police arrived at Shaheen Bagh in New Delhi to visit the residence of Shahrukh Saifi, who is accused of setting his co-passengers on fire in a moving train in Kerala. It is notable that earlier today, with the help of Maharashtra ATS, the Kerala police nabbed Shahrukh Saifi from Ratnagiri railway station. The accused will be handed over to the Kerala Police today and brought to Kochi by this evening.
Delhi | A team of Kerala Police arrives at Shaheen Bagh to visit the residence of the Kozhikode train fire incident suspect, Shahrukh Saifi pic.twitter.com/luw2qmxm8i
— ANI (@ANI) April 5, 2023
Earlier, it was reported that the investigation team collected details of the SIM card used by accused Shahrukh Saifi. The police team had recovered a diary from a bag suspected to belong to the accused. In the diary ‘Shahrukh Saifi carpenter’ was written. Upon investigating the accused’s mobile phone it was found that the SIM card was obtained in the name of Shahrukh Mohammad Fakhruddin, C-8, Faisal Enclave, Shaheen Bagh in South Delh’s Jamia Nagar, as reported by Manorama. The SIM was reportedly switched off on March 31 in Haryana. The police so far have not found evidence suggesting that the accused contacted anyone in Kerala using this SIM card.
Reportedly, two weeks ago the accused was also spotted near Irumpanam in Tripunithura. After the sketch of the accused was released the Kerala ATS received some confidential information and started collecting evidence. Amidst allegations that the Brahmapuram waste fire was started by someone, this development may also be crucial in the Brahmapuram fire case, as per reports.
Kerala DGP, Anil Kant confirmed the arrest of accused Shahrukh Saifi and said that a thorough interrogation of the accused will be conducted.
According to the police, Shahrukh Saifi, a Shaheen Bagh native went missing from his house on March 30. Following this, his parents lodged a missing person complaint on Saturday. Saifi’s attempts to flee to Gujarat were thwarted when the burns on his face worsened, forcing him to stop in Maharashtra instead.
During their visit on Wednesday, the Kerala police team questioned the family of the accused, and searches were also conducted, however, nothing contentious was found. Shahrukh’s parents claimed to have no information about the case.
While some media reports say that the accused was arrested at Ratnagiri railway station, others state that Shahrukh Saifi was arrested from a hospital in Ratnagiri where he was receiving medical treatment for his burn injuries during the arson attack on April 2.
According to media reports, 30-year-old Shahrukh Saifi was working in Kerala as a construction worker. Earlier it was reported that a suspect was taken into custody by the UP ATS from Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr. However, UP ATS chief Navin Arora stated that the ATS team only checked his credentials, and the person was neither arrested nor interrogated.
Meanwhile, Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw thanked the agencies and the Maharashtra government for prompt action.
#WATCH | Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Kozhikode train fire case suspect nabbed by police in Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/FuhPmjvnN9
— ANI (@ANI) April 5, 2023
The perpetrator of this heinous crime has been apprehended in Maharashtra’s Ratnagiri. Minister Vaishnaw stated, “I thank the Maharashtra government, their police, RPF, and NIA who have apprehended him this quickly.
Accused Shahrukh Saifi had reportedly boarded the Alappuzha-Kannur Executive Express train in Kozhikode at around 9.45 pm on Sunday, April 2, to pour an inflammable liquid on fellow passengers in the moving train and set them on fire.
The bodies of a woman, a man, and a child were found on the tracks near the Elathur station after the incident, the police had stated. It is suspected that the 3 persons were trying to get away from the fire and may have fallen or jumped from the train to escape.
