The Railway Protection Force (RPF) has reportedly let off a couple of minor boys who were found to have thrown firecrackers at the Maveli Express at the Vellayil Railway Station in Kozhikode on August 13 night.
According to sources, they were nabbed from the railway station premises by personnel from the Vellayil Police Station, who were patrolling the area on August 14 night. Though there were three boys in the group, one of them managed to flee from the area. Firecrackers were recovered from the two others. The police claim that they were planning to hurl them at trains again. The boys were later handed over to the Railway Protection Force, who questioned them and let them off with their parents.
The hurling of firecrackers had raised security concerns as Union Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan and Minister for Public Works P.A. Mohamed Riyas were expected to board the Thiruvananthapuram-bound train coming from Mangaluru at the Kozhikode Railway Station. When the train passed by the Vellayil station, an incendiary object was found to have been thrown from the eastern side of the platform towards the general coach. It hit a passenger’s leg, fell outside the coach, and burst. The passenger informed the RPF personnel about the incident when the train reached the Kozhikode station.
The RPF inspected the Vellayil station premises soon after. The local police too searched the area with the help of a bomb squad, but could not recover anything. A case has been registered at the Vellayil Police Station.
