Hyderabad:
One person was killed and eight others were seriously injured when police opened fire to disperse an angry mob at Telangana’s Secunderabad railway station on Friday in protest of the Union Defense Ministry’s new ‘Agnipath’ scheme. Hundreds of candidates vying for army recruitment exams ransacked Telangana’s main railway station. The injured were taken to Secunderabad’s Gandhi Hospital.
“The General Railway Police (GRP) forces were forced to open fire on the angry crowd after lathi-charged and fired tear gas shells,” a senior police officer said.
According to reports, the GRP forces fired approximately 15 rounds to control the crowd. Stone pelting also injured two police officers. Railway Director General Sandeep Shandilya and other senior officials have arrived and are monitoring the situation.
Protesters also pelted stones and set fire to two train bogies, in addition to causing damage to other railway properties.
The mob also vandalised State Road Transport Corporation buses outside the railway station, forcing South-Central Railway officials to halt all trains entering the station immediately.
According to police, hundreds of protesters stormed the railway station and used sticks and stones to damage stalls and offices on platforms 1 and 2. They threw rocks at parked trains, forcing passengers to flee for safety. In this incident, some passengers were also injured.
Protesters set fire to two bogies of the Kolkata-bound East Coast Express as it left the station. They also set fire to some Ajanta Express and Multi-Modal Transport System (MMTS) train bogies.
In addition, agitators threw railway goods onto the tracks and set them on fire. During this time, the track was completely destroyed. It took five fire trucks more than two hours to extinguish the blaze at the station and its grounds.
200 train services affected
Due to the ongoing agitation, 200 train services have been disrupted. Thirty-five train services have been cancelled across the country, while 13 have been curtailed.
]]>
, International, ,