EXCLUSIVE: RPF Constable shoots last victim, claiming revenge for 2008 attack

Killer RPF constable Chetan Singh Chaudhary was heard proclaiming ldquoYe 2008 ka badla hairdquo while going on a rampage on the JaipurMumbai Superfast Express according to the charge sheet filed by the GRP in connection with the case According to the document exclusively accessed by midday the accused had decided to gun down passengers based on their religion using their clothing and facial hair as clues to their identityThe accused being taken to court following the incident File picPTIDespite one of the victimsrsquo pleas to Chaudhary in which he said ldquoAllah Bhagwan ek hi hai Mai Allah ko bhi manta hoon aur Bhagwan ko bhi manta hoonrdquo the accused shot him twice in the chest according to the charge sheet The 700page document contains 200 statements from witnesses who recounted the harrowing incident that occurred on the morning of July 31 inside the 12956 JaipurMumbai Superfast Express Train Chaudhary first shot his senior ASI Tikaram Meena in bogie no B5 and subsequently gunned down three other passengers in bogey no B5 the pantry car and S6 respectively according to witnessesPivotal statementThe most pivotal statement in the GRPrsquos records comes from RPF Constable Narendra Kumar Parmar who was assigned to escort duty alongside Chaudhary According to the charge sheet Parmar serves as a key eyewitness to the shooting of two victims which as per the statement was driven by religious bigotryThe first person to be shot dead by Chetan Singh Choudhary was his senior ASI Tikaram Meena 58 who was shot dead in the passage of compartment B5 and B6 of the JaipurMumbai train following an argument they had over a request to leave the train over alleged illhealth was denied next to be shot was Qadarbhai Bhanpurwala 62 a passenger who had complained about the noise from the argument disturbing those who were sleeping Chetan Singh demanded to know who had complained and then shot Bhanpurwala between coaches B5 and B6 Chetan Singh then traversed three coaches B4 B3 and B2 before stopping in B1 and singling out Saifuddin Sayyed 43 whom he marched to the pantry door and shot him Chetan Singhrsquos last victim was Asgar Abbas Sheikh 38 in coach B6 who was sporting a beard Even as Sheikh begged Chetan Singh shot him in the chestIn his statement Parmar recounted that he was on duty with another constable Amay Acharya responsible for overseeing bogies from S1 to S6 and the general compartments Meanwhile their senior ASI Meena and the accused were tasked with looking after the train from the pantry car to the engine Parmar explained that after completing rounds in their designated area Acharya went to hand over paperwork to ASI Meena At approximately 4 am Acharya contacted Parmar and informed him that Chaudhary was unwell and had declined to continue his duties Chaudhary expressed a desire to disembark at Valsad Acharya volunteered to take over the duty with ASI Meena requesting Parmar to assume responsibility for his assigned bogeyParmar stated that he received another call from Acharya at 530 am while he was inside compartment no S6 Acharya informed him that Chaudhary had fired upon ASI Meena Parmar had then entered compartment no B1lsquoFeared he could harm anyonersquoIn B1 Parmar observed that five or six passengers had gathered and everyone was in a state of panic He stated in his testimony ldquoThen I saw Chaudhary entering the B1 coach and another person was walking about five or six feet ahead of him Chaudhary was holding a rifle behind him The person wore a white Tshirt and black track pants with a long beard Chetan appeared very serious and at that moment I feared that he might harm anyone including myself I tried to conceal myself beneath the seat with the other passengersrdquoCops guard the B5 compartment of the JaipurMumbai passenger train the scene of the massacre File PicPradeep DhivarHe further explained that Chaudhary advanced toward the pantry while keeping the passengers under control at rifle point ldquoI followed at a safe distance deeply concerned about his intentions As he approached bogie number B1 I had a sinking feeling that he might open fire on a passenger at any moment Fearing that any attempt to intervene might also expose me to danger I maintained a close watchrdquo he statedAfter a few minutes Chaudhary discharged his weapon and the victim was later identified as Saifuddin Sayyed the second passenger who was killed ldquoI vividly heard Sayyedrsquos anguished cries as he experienced intense pain following the gunshot fired by Chaudharyrdquo Parmar said in his statement According to Parmar the accused then moved towards bogie number S6 with his colleague closely following himA bullet hole on the window of the B5 compartment of the express train File PicPradeep DhivarLast murderParmar stated ldquoIn bogie number S6 all passengers were either standing near their seats or in the passage Chaudhary was pointing his rifle at a passenger who was wearing a grey kurta and had a long beard Chaudhary was speaking to the passenger and the latter was attempting to converse with himrdquo He added ldquoI heard the passenger say lsquoMai ek aam mulazim ordinary employee hoon Mai Allah ko bhi manta hoon aur Bhagwan ko bhi manta hoonrsquo indicating his lack of prejudice It was clear that the passenger was pleading for mercy However Chaudhary did not heed the passenger The last shooting left other passengers in a state of fear causing them to scatter and hide throughout the bogierdquolsquoTried to kill another passengerrsquoAs per Parmarrsquos statement the passenger who was shot inside bogie number S6 was later identified as Asgar Abbas He also said that he then tried to stop Chaudhary but he looked at him with so much fury that Parmar got scared that he might shoot him According to Parmar Chaudhary tried to kill another passenger who pulled the chain but he ultimately panickedDoctorrsquos notesAfter Chaudhary was apprehended by the police he was taken to a doctor for a medical examination where declared that he had no regrets for what he had done ldquoHistory narrated by the accused himself gives the alleged history that he killed three men along with his senior this morning and does not regret his actions Chaudhary told doctor lsquoMaine teen logo ko mara aur mujhe koi afsos nahi hai Maine dikhaya sabko maine kya kiya I shot three persons and donrsquot regret it Irsquove showed to the world what I have donersquo The accused was altering and misleading his statements Initially he said that he saw the victims in his dream but later he said that this was not the caserdquo a Cooper hospital doctor who examined the accused had written in his notes Another crucial statement recorded by the GRP is of a GST officer who had told the police that he heard Chaudhary saying ldquoYe 2008 ka badla hairdquo There are several such statements that reveal the accused hated the Muslim community and was mentally stableHow the bloodshed unfolded in compartment B5ASI Tikaram Meena 58 was shot in between B5 and B6ASI Meena boarded the JaipurMumbai Superfast Express along with constable Narendra Parmar Aman Acharya and Chetan Singh The team entered the train at 252 am on July 30 ASI Meena and constable Chetan Singh were assigned to the AC coach while constable Parmar and Acharya were in the sleeper coach About half an hour into the journey Chetan requested permission to disembark at Valsad claiming illness However ASI Meena contacted the control room and denied his request Meena then instructed constable Acharya to escort Chetan to B4 take his rifle and allow him to restAround 5 am Acharya observed an escalating argument between Chetan and Meena Despite Acharyarsquos efforts to calm Chetan down he remained agitated and determined to exit the train As Acharya left he noticed Chetan removing the safety catch of his rifle indicating a potential threat Acharya left the area and received a call from his RPF batchmate in Nalasopara who informed him that ASI Meena had been shot When Acharya asked how he knew his batchmate mentioned that an AC coach attendant had informed him about the incidentQadarbhai Bhanpurwala 62 was shot between B5 and B6Bhanupurwala was travelling from Bhanpur Madhya Pradesh and was seated in coach B5 He had heard the argument between ASI Meena and constable Chetansinh which had drawn the ire of Bhanpurwala who was sleeping in the same coach He had then got up and complained to ASI Meena about the noiseAfter Chetan shot Meena in the passage between B5 and B6 people sealed the coach door between B5 and B6 Chetan then returned to B5 and identified the passenger who had complained to ASI Meena He pointed his firearm at the passenger and forced him to the passage between B5 and B4 where he shot him The victim was later identified as Qadarbhai BhanpurwalaSaifuddin Sayyed 43 was shot in the passage between the pantry and coach B1After he had killed Bhanpurwala Chetan Singh traversed three coach sectionsmdashB4 B3 B2mdash and reached B1 Inside the coach he approached seat number 61 aimed his weapon at Saifuddin Sayyed and ordered him lsquoKhada hokar bahar chalrsquo stand up and come with me Sayyed asked Chetan about the reason for his demandChetan responded lsquoYahaan ladies soyi hain bahar chalrsquo Women are sleeping here come out Another fellow passenger objected to Chetanrsquos actions asking lsquoYe tu kya kar raha hairsquo What are you doing Chetan retorted lsquoTum chupp baithorsquo You be quiet held Sayyed hostage and directed him towards the B1 coach He then shot Sayyed at the pantry door Witnesses reported that after being shot by Chetan Sayyed cried for help but no one dared to assist himAsgar Abbas Sheikh 38 was shot inside the S6 coachAfter shooting Sayyed Chetan proceeded from the pantry to S6 where he confronted another passenger with a beard and placed his rifle against the manrsquos chest Sheikh attempted to reason with Chetan saying lsquoMain ek aam mulazim hoon Allahbhagwan ek hi hain main Allah ko maanta hoon aur Bhagwan ko bhi manta hoonrsquo Irsquom a common man there is only one God and I believe in both Allah and Bhagwan He pleaded for mercy but Chetan shot him twice in the chestIn the same coach Chetan urged other passengers to record the incident proclaiming lsquoYe 2008 ka badla hairsquo This is revenge for the 2611 terror attack in 2008 and insisting that they capture it on camera Chetan then proceeded to deliver a hate speech lsquoinhone mara Pakistan main operate hue ye tumhari media yehi media coverage dikha rahi hairsquo He asked the passengers lsquoPata chal raha hai pata chal raha hai Kaunsa pata chal raha hairsquo Agar vote dena hai agar Hindustan main rehna hai main kehta hoon Modi aur Yogi ye do hai aur aap ke ThackerayJuly 31Day murders occurred