The Railways on Wednesday withdrew its statement hours after saying that the Constable Chetan Singh, who shot dead four persons on a running train had not disclosed that he was receiving treatment for mental illness on his personal capacity, PTI reported. The statement also said that no such illness had been detected in the periodic medical examination conducted by the Railways.
However, the Railways withdrew the statement soon and said that a committee will look into the matter.
On Monday, Singh had shot dead his supervising officer and three Muslims on the Jaipur-Mumbai Central Superfast Express. He walked through several compartments of the train to pick his victims.
He also asked passengers in the train to record a video in which he can be heard hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath as the body of one of the Muslim men lies at his feet.
“They operate from Pakistan, this is what the media of the country is showing,” Singh can be heard saying in the video. “They have found out, they know everything, their leaders are there. If you want to vote, if you want to live in India, then I say, Modi and Yogi, these are the two, and your Thackeray.”
According to The Indian Express, in its statement on Wednesday, the railway ministry said: “The treatment for the present medical ailment has been taken on his personal level by Chetan Singh and is not in official records… He and his family have kept it a secret.”
The statement came after some news reports said that Singh suffered from anxiety disorder.
However, the statement went on to add: “In the last PME [periodic medical examination], no such medical ailment/condition was detected”. Periodic Medical Examinations are held every five years to check whether Railway Police Force officials are fit for the job.
About two hours later, the Railways removed the statement from the Press Information Bureau website. “A high-level committee has already been set up to look into these aspects,” a Railway Ministry spokesperson told The Indian Express. “That is why the release was withdrawn.”
Following the killings, Railway Protection Force Inspector General PC Sinha had told the newspaper that Singh was known to be “hot-headed”.
“But then we found no such instance in his record of past five years,” Sinha, who is also the principal chief security commissioner of Western Railway, had said. “His record has been clean and that’s why I posted him in Mumbai when he requested six months ago.”
However, a day later, the office of the chief security commissioner of Western Railway said that Sinha has clarified that he was misquoted and that no statement has been made that Singh was “suffering from mental health issues”.
“The case is under investigation,” it added.
Also read:
‘It could have been me’: Why the train shootings have struck fear in Muslims
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