Train drivers say they didn't run over Russian girl

Train drivers say they didn't run over Russian girl
Preetu Nair, TNN

PANAJI: The drivers of three express trains that passed Thivim railway station on the night of May 8, have told Mapusa police that no train ran
over the Russian girl, Elena Sukhonova. They have, however, not ruled out the possibility of a runover which went unnoticed, said police sources.

Elena's mutilated body was found by a railway gangman at 7.45am, about 3.5 km from Thivim railway station. Police investigations revealed that she was dropped at the station by a yellow cab driver at around 3am.

Speaking to TOI, police sources said that the drivers of Mangala Express which left Thivim railway station at 5.02am, Netravati Express which left at 7.09 am (both proceeding to Mumbai) and Veraval Express which reached the station at 7.35 am (proceeding to Kerala), claimed that they did not see anything on the tracks nor reported any runover or chain pulling incident in their respective trains on May 8.

This has left the police "intrigued". They had initially expressed the possibility of an accidental fall from either Mangala Express or Netravati Express, both bound for Mumbai.

"Elena was travelling with just her handbag, without either her passport nor luggage. Had she fallen out of either Mangala Express or Netravati Express, she would have been found on the tracks by the driver of Hapa Express. But the main loco pilot of Hapa Express said that neither did they see anything nor report any runover," police sources revealed.

The driver told police, sources said, that in the past there had been several cases of people run over by a train, which had been reported to the nearest railway station, but this time they had not seen anything on the tracks. And while the three train drivers maintain that they did not run over any body, they did not rule out the possibility of a runover.

"They said that they may have run over something, but may have not realized or noticed, as they have to manage several things at once. Apart from looking for the signal they also have to maintain a speed of 110km/hr, ensure that the oil pressure and diesel pressure are good and also handle other aspects," police sources said. Each train has one main and one assistant loco pilot. All were grilled for hours by police officers.

"The drivers said that if anything is lying on the tracks it is visible only from 100m. Even if they apply brakes at that distance, the train doesn't immediately halt. It comes to a halt nearly 600m away from where the break is applied. So the possibility of stopping the train to avoid a runover is remote," said police sources.

They further revealed that the drivers told them that in case of a runover, they don't stop the train to check, but rather, they inform the nearest railway station and the railway control room. "They said that for every minute lost, they have to give an explanation," police sources said.

These statements, incidentally, are in contrast to the statement given by the Thivim railway station master, who had said that if a train's driver spots any obstruction on the tracks he stops the train, clears the tracks and then proceeds.

Police also said that the main loco pilot of Mangala Express said that he had not seen anything on the tracks as it was dark and though as per the train standard the train should have had a headlight with visibility up to 240m, the headlight's actual visibility, when it passed through the route on May 8, was only 140m.

Elena was carrying her mobile and police claim that she had even clicked a photograph of a goods wagon passing Thivim railway station a few hours before her death, thus establishing her presence at the railway station at about 3.25am. Police sources added, "This was the last time the mobile was used."

Meanwhile, another waiter, Vir Singh, from Himachal Pradesh, who was asked to quit his job in the hotel at Baga as he was friendly with the Russian girl has arrived in Goa along with his father. He had reportedly left Goa on May 6.

May 18,2009, The Times of India, Goa edition