On 28 May 2010, at round 1.30 pm, the Howrah-Mumbai Lokmanya Tilak Terminus Dnyaneshwari Express derailed in West Bengal, allegedly after the removing of a portion of the tracks by Maoists. Soon after, a items prepare moving into the wrong way rammed into the rubble. A complete of 141 individuals have been declared useless on this incident.
The different 18 victims are formally “missing”. All these individuals have been touring from Dnyaneshwari, however not one of the organs and different physique elements discovered on the accident web site may very well be established as their belonging. The DNA checks couldn’t match the members of the households to which these people have been associated.
One of these initially declared useless turned out to be alive. The CBI not too long ago registered a case of dishonest and forgery in opposition to Kolkata-based Amrutav Choudhary, whose sister was alleged to have gotten a job within the Railways as a part of compensation for her ‘dying’.
But greater than 11 years after the tragedy, the 16 households from which there are 18 ‘lacking’ passengers nonetheless await closure, working from court docket to authorities places of work to get dying certificates .
“We were shocked to learn that a person who was declared dead was found alive. And here we are, what happened to my husband after so many years, and there is no death certificate,” stated Juthika Ata, 39, a resident of Salkia, Howrah. Juthika’s husband Prasenjit Ata was on his approach to Bhusaval in Dnyaneshwari that evening. Had he been alive, he would have been 42 years outdated now.
“It may well be that the body which was cremated as Amritav Choudhary was that of my husband. So my daughter went to the CBI office and we wrote her a letter,” stated Juthika. Juthika and Prasenjit’s daughter Paulomi research in school eleventh.
Juthika stated that within the absence of the dying certificates, she will not be capable of entry her husband’s checking account, or declare the advantage of the LIC coverage bought by him.
“We got a compensation of Rs 10 lakh, that’s all… the death certificate will also help my daughter get a job as compensation,” he stated. My husband was the one incomes member of the household,” she stated. Juthika herself suffered a stroke in 2019, and is now bedridden.
Juthika stated her brother had recognized a useless physique, which they believed to be that of Prasenjit, however had been claimed by one other household earlier than going to the police. “Since then, I have visited many offices, met many people, but have been unable to get the death certificate. We have also filed a case for death certificate in a Jhargram court, but the matter is still pending,” she stated.
Dnyaneshwari derailed close to Soordiha station in Paschim Medinipur district close to Jhargram. The accident was one of many deadliest lately.
Rajesh Bhatra of Belur misplaced his spouse Indudevi (40) and son Saurav (17) within the accident. His daughter Sneha (14) is on the lacking checklist.
Bhatra (52) wrote a letter to the then Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. He has tried to fulfill Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“I’ve no hope from anybody. Almost seven months after the accident, I discovered my spouse’s physique. But the place did my daughter go? I’ve written to the PMO, tried to fulfill the CM, approached the court docket, however nothing occurred .I can method CBI now,” Bhatra stated.
“I see my Sneha in each little woman. Why ought to I consider that she is useless, when her physique has not been given to me?” he stated.
Bhatra’s household was going to Kalyan for summer season trip at Indudevi’s brother’s home.
“I went to the accident site in a car,” Bhatra stated. “There have been our bodies and physique elements all over the place. “I seemed for my daughter and spouse. My son died three days later at CMRI Hospital in Kolkata. My spouse’s physique was given to us within the month of December. But 11 years have handed, and I do not know what occurred to my daughter; If she is useless, the place is her physique?” Bhatra stated, tears are rolling down his cheeks.
Surendra Kumar Singh (54) stated that he had recognized a severed limb as that of his spouse Neelam, however couldn’t discover the remainder of her physique. Neelam and the couple’s son Rahul are each on the checklist of ‘lacking’ passengers.
“I noticed a severed leg on the tracks and acknowledged it as Neelam. I began searching for different elements of his physique, however was unsuccessful. When I reached again the place I noticed the severed leg, it was not there. People have been combating over physique elements. The police and the locals have been saying, “Take whatever you are getting.” Singh stated.
Singh can be unable to run his spouse’s checking account as a consequence of lack of dying certificates. “We gave blood samples twice for DNA testing, but I don’t know what the results were,” he stated. Next to Singh’s mattress within the couple’s two-room flat is an image of his spouse and son.
Like Juthika, Singh additionally moved the court docket in Jhargram in 2018 and sought a dying certificates. He stated that the matter remains to be being heard.
Tirthankar Bhakt, counsel for each Juthika and Singh, stated: “The regulation says that if an individual is lacking for seven years, the court docket can declare that individual useless. For the final one yr, the court docket has not functioned correctly because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is unlucky that the Railways and the state authorities couldn’t assist these households on humanitarian grounds… Juthika is poor; A compensatory job will save the household. But he nonetheless doesn’t have the dying certificates.
On the alleged ‘faux’ dying, CBI sources stated the anti-corruption wing of the company had obtained a criticism from the General Manager (Vigilance) of South Eastern Railway alleging that ‘useless’ passenger Amrutv Choudhary, son of Mihir Kumar Choudhary, was in The information have been alive.
After DNA profiling, the Railways handed over ‘Amrita’s physique’ to his household; According to the railways, Amritwa was proven useless “by dishonestly matching her DNA with the help of government officials and insurance agents”.
A case has been registered in opposition to Amritva, her members of the family and unknown public servants. The CBI had sought permission for DNA check of Amritva and her father, which was performed after the permission of the court docket.
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
