Mumbai: A 54-year-old woman was allegedly raped inside the guard compartment of an empty express train at Bandra Terminus in the early hours of February 2. The accused was later arrested by a joint team of the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and the Government Railway Police (GRP), Bandra, and handed over to the Bandra Government Railway Police (GRP) for further action. A police source said that the accused was around 25 years of age and was a porter. No further details were disclosed by the railway police.

About The Case

According to preliminary reports, the incident was reported around 4 am when the victim and her son-in-law approached the Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel at the concourse area. They informed the officers that the ‘woman had been assaulted in the guard compartment of an empty train, Bandra Terminus Udhna Express (09055/56), which was stationed on Platform No. 6. Following the complaint, RPF and GRP personnel immediately launched a search operation and located the accused inside the train. The accused was then taken into custody by the Bandra GRP while the victim was sent for medical examination.

Prima facie, the victim, and her son-in-law had arrived in Mumbai by the Dehradun Express, which reached Bandra Terminus at 10.30 pm on February 1. Since they had no accommodation, they decided to wait at the station overnight and moved towards Platform Nos. 6 and 7 at 10.39 pm. At approximately 1.49 am, CCTV footage and eyewitness accounts suggest that the accused approached the victim and coerced her into the guard compartment. At this time, her son-in-law was asleep on the near-empty platform. Taking advantage of the situation, the accused allegedly committed the crime, police said.

After receiving information about the incident, senior railway officials, including the Senior Divisional Security Commissioner of the Mumbai Central Division of Western Railway, visited the scene of the crime. The Assistant Security Commissioner of the Mumbai Central Division (Western Railway) has been directed to conduct a detailed inquiry into the incident and identify any lapses in security measures.

Case Registered

The Bandra railway police have registered a case under Sections 64(1) (punishment for rape), 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), and 303(2) (theft) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. According to a police source, the accused identified himself as Rahul Shaikh, but the police suspect he may be lying. He subsists mostly on footpaths or platforms of Bandra. The victim owns a grocery shop in her village and had come to Mumbai with her son-inlaw from Dehradun for work.