Three coaches of a Ranchi-Mumbai train were set on fire here by unidentified people as they were kept in a railway yard for cleaning, police sources said on Wednesday.
According to sources, the coaches were kept in Hatia railway station yard and were set on fire Tuesday night. No one was injured in the incident. The train leaves Ranchi for Mumbai every Wednesday night.
Kalawanti, the public relation officer of Hatia division, said: "A forensic team has arrived to investigate the case. We cannot say how the coaches caught fire."
Asked whether the train will leave for Mumbai as scheduled, Kalawant said: "The train will leave Ranchi on time. The burnt coaches will be replaced."
The police sources said the incident could be work of agitators protesting the treatment of north Indians in Mumbai.
Various student groups have been agitating in Bihar to denounce the attacks by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) on non-Maharashtrian candidates, mainly from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, appearing for railway recruitment examinations in Mumbai.
The widespread violent protests have affected at least 200 trains in Bihar.