A book with a list of rly stations on target crucial to Kerala train fire probe

For the Kerala police the train fire case is becoming a puzzle with the prime suspect telling them he only knew about Kerala through hearsay.

The book that has been retrieved from the prime accused, Sharukh Saifi showed that there was a list of targeted railway stations. The police will start questioning him post his medical examination and production before a court, where his custody needs to be sought.

Saifi has been vague in his responses. At first he had told the police post his arrest in Maharashtra's Ratnagiri that he was being guided by someone to carry out the attack. Now he has claimed that he had acted on his own. Sources tell OneIndia that the line of questioning would be clear.

For now Saifi has been dodging questions and has been giving varied responses, thus making it hard for the police to come to any conclusion.

First, the police would want to know his motive. Second, whether he acted at the behest of someone or as a lone wolf. Thirdly, his source of funding.

Investigating agencies are ruling out any possibility in this case. The Kerala Police, Railway Protection Force, National Investigation Agency and the Intelligence Bureau are all involved in this case. All possible angles are under investigation, but the one that comes closest is a terror angle, the source cited above said.

The forensics team of the NIA had visited the site of the incident and has collected evidence. AN official said that they are examining the evidence. If it turns out to be a case of terror then it is a text book lone wolf attack, in which no suspicious material was used. In many lone wolf attacks, one has witnessed the use of knives, stones and in this case, petrol, the official explained.

Meanwhile Saini's father, Fakhruddin has told India Today that he believes that his son may have been brainwashed and misled by some people. Sharukh and his family reside in Delhi's Shaheen Bagh area. Shahrukh's father had approached the Delhi Police to file a missing complaint as he was unable to contact his son since March 31.

His father also claimed that his son has been framed. He has not part of any organisation or does not have any criminal antecedents, Fakhruddin said. We will wait for how the investigation goes, he also added.

On Sunday night, Shahrukh had allegedly set fire to passengers after pouring petrol petrol on them when the train reached Korapuzha bridge, near Elathur in Kerala. Three persons died after jumping out of the train to avoid being burnt. The bodies of a woman, an infant and a man were recovered rom the track near the railway station. Nine other suffered burn injuries in the incident.