| Deaths caused by toxicity and suffocation |
The fire claimed 59 lives and the incident led to widespread riots in the State, causing a huge loss of life and property.
"It was not a deliberately inflicted fire but an accidental one," Mr. Justice Banerjee told mediapersons after handing over the final report to Railway Board Chairman J. C. Batra here on Friday. It confirms the preliminary conclusion reached by the Commission in the interim report submitted on January 17 last year.
The former Supreme Court judge was appointed in September 2004 to probe the cause of the fire aboard coach S-6, carrying kar sevaks.
The Railways, then under Nitish Kumar, virtually endorsed the theory that the fire was caused by outsiders.
Mr. Justice Banerjee dismissed it, pointing out that police officials and others in their testimony stated there were no crowds at the station and those present were just onlookers.
"Unbelievable"
He termed `misconception' a claim that all four entrances of the coach were locked. "This is not possible." Further, there were about 250 passengers in the coach and it was unbelievable that 90 per cent of them were kar sevaks. Only 59 persons died and the others escaped. "How could it happen if the entry doors were locked?"
Mr. Justice Banerjee attributed the deaths to toxicity and suffocation caused by rexin, foam and other inflammable materials in the coach. He cited the testimony of an income tax official.
Police deposition
Quoting the then Additional Director-General of Police, Sree Kumar, who was in charge of intelligence, and others, Mr. Justice Banerjee said the intelligence apparatus had no information when the kar sevaks were coming. As such, how would others know that the kar sevaks were travelling in the train?
Besides Mr. Kumar, police officers J. K. Bhat, Raj Bhargava and Rahul Sharma deposed before him.
Mr. Justice Banerjee said the police refused to cooperate with him initially and came forward to depose only after a year when he invoked his powers under the Commission of Inquiry Act.
Mr. Kumar and another officer, in their deposition, said they rushed to a place where a mosque was under attack and curfew was clamped there immediately.
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"Ours is a battle not for wealth or for power.
It is a battle for freedom. It is a battle for the reclamation of human personality."
- Dr BR Ambedkar
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