Mumbra mishap: Staffers framed, says rly union; protest may hit ops

Central Railway denies FIR allegations of technical lapses in the June 9 Mumbra train accident that killed five, plans protest against the charges.

MUMBAI: The Central Railway (CR) authorities continue to deny allegations in the First Information Report (FIR) by the Thane Government Railway Police (GRP) that technical lapses led to the Mumbra train accident on June 9, in which five commuters died. On Tuesday, the Central Railway Mazdoor Sangh (CRMS) wrote to the CR divisional railway manager, Mumbai, regarding the FIR. The union will hold a protest at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) on Thursday opposing the FIR.

Thane, India. June 09, 2025: Senior officials from the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and the Government Railway Police conducted an inspection at Mumbra Railway Station, where four commuters lost their lives and nine others were injured. The incident occurred when the commuters fell from a train heading to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) on June 9, 2025. Thane, India. 09, 2025. (Photo by Raju Shinde/HT Photo) (Hindustan Times)

The Thane GRP registered an FIR on Monday against two CR engineers -- Vishal Dolas and Samar Yadav -- in the accident case for core engineering and maintenance lapses under Section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 125(a) (acts endangering human life and personal safety of others), 125(b) (rash and negligent acts that result in grievous hurt) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita, 2023.

According to the FIR, Mumbra and nearby localities had witnessed heavy rainfall in the last week of May and first week of June this year, which led to waterlogging on the tracks. As a result, some parts had lost ground support. Subsequently, tracks were changed on June 5. However, the FIR states, the tracks were not levelled and were tilted towards each other when the incident took place.

SK Dubey, Division Secretary, CRMS, said, “It is deeply concerning and wholly unacceptable that the names of innocent railway officials have been included in the FIR.”

If the FIR is not quashed and the union protests, it will adversely affect the train operations, for which the CR administration will be responsible, the letter stated. Dubey also asked the CR administration to immediately intervene to ensure their employees are not held accountable for the June 9 incident. He has urged the CR to provide them with legal and administrative support at the time.

CR officials have approached officials in the state government and met with bureaucrats at the home department, regarding the GRP’s case, an official said on Tuesday. Sources also claimed that the railway authorities were not informed, as per protocol, that an FIR would be registered against their employees.

The FIR adds that despite knowing that the both track no. 3 and 4, which caters to up-and-down fast local, were uneven, the accused did not take any precautionary steps to reduce the speed of trains at the curvature and to level the tracks. However, CR authorities stated that there were no issues with the speed on the curve, and that many trains plied the tracks before and after the June 9 incident. They also clarified that they found no issue on the tracks, soil, ground, or other features of the rail lines when they inspected immediately after the incident. “Based on GRP’s allegations, the train would have derailed in case of improper tracks and/or ground conditions,” said the official.

Another official said the anomalies GRP pointed out are misleading. “We will be confident of addressing every point raised by GRP in the court. Our system is so robust that the smallest, unusual jerk during movement is reported. We will then examine it, and 99% of the problems reported are wrong.”