New Delhi:
Barely a week after Prime Minister asked his Ministers not to air their difference of opinion in the public, the top UPA Ministers have again been found speaking in different voices over the train accident in West Bengal's Midnapore, in which 65 people have been killed.
The question now is: What caused the derailment?
While Home Minister P Chidambaram said that train derailment in West Bengal appears to be a case of sabotage, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said a blast as part of a "calculated attack" caused the Gyaneshwari Express to first derail and then get hit by a goods train.
"It appears to be a case of sabotage where a portion of the railway track was removed. Whether explosives were used is not yet clear," Chidambaram said in a statement.
The Railway Minister further said that TNT explosives and Gelatine sticks were found at the accident site.
"It is a bomb blast case. After the blast, the train derailed and the accident happened. According to information given by Railway Police Force and officials TNT and Gelatine sticks were found at the accident," Banerjee told reporters shortly after visiting the spot.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, however, contradicted the statements of both the ministers and said, "I don't know what is the cause. When I last checked, there was no evidence of either an explosion or sabotage activity."
Meanwhile, the West Bengal police have said that Maoist-backed organisation People's Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA) has claimed responsibility for the accident. "Two posters belonging to the Maoist-backed PCPA have been found at the site," West Bengal Director General of Police Bhupinder Singh told NDTV.
Earlier, West Bengal's Inspector General of Police (Law and Order) Surojit Karpurokayastha said that according to preliminary investigation, fish plates were found removed at the derailment site.
There is confusion over whether a bomb blast by Naxals or an act of sabotage by removal of fish plates led to the derailment. Whether explosives were used is not yet clear. (With inputs from agencies)