A witness in the Mumbai-Jaipur train firing incident told a Mumbai court on Monday that she saw a “bearded” man lying in a pool of blood after the accused, Chetansinh Chaudhary, shot him twice, news agency PTI reported.

Chaudhary, who was then a Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel, had allegedly shot dead four people on board a moving train in July 2023.

The 29-year-old witness, who was travelling with her friend on the day of the shooting, gave an account of the deadly attack that unfolded before her eyes during the hearing, PTI reported.

Apart from three passengers, one of the victims who Chaudhary allegedly murdered is his senior colleague, Assistant Sub-Inspector Tika Ram Meena. The incident took place when the train was near Palghar Railway Station in Maharashtra on July 31.

Chaudhary was apprehended near the tracks some time later and has been in jail since then. He was dismissed from service after the incident.

Deposing before Additional Sessions Judge YB Pathan at a court in Borivali, the witness said that she woke up around 5.30 am and saw a person running out of a pantry car, with the accused RPF constable behind him, PTI reported.

“I asked the RPF person (Chaudhary) if something had happened. He just stared at me angrily, and I sat back quietly in my seat,” she said.

The woman recounted that her friend wanted to use the washroom, but Chaudhary was standing near it, and when asked to give her way, he glared at her friend, and they were forced to return to their seats.

The witness informed that after roaming in their compartment a couple of times, the accused approached a bearded man and started arguing with him.

He then shot the man twice and later saw the man lying in a pool of blood. The woman was being examined by Additional Public Prosecutor Sudhir Sapkale.

Scared after the attack, the woman, responding to defence lawyer Jaywant Patil, said she did not go near the spot where the man was shot.

The witness said that she later saw the news about the incident and the RPF constable`s arrest at home.

Chaudhary was produced before the court through video-conferencing.

He has been charged under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 302 (murder) and 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc) as well as relevant provisions of the Railways Act and the Maharashtra Prevention of Defacement of Property Act.

(With PTI inputs)

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