Bihar 'Cop' Throws Man Off Train Over Rs 20,000 'Fine' For Smoking

He would board the 'divyangjan' (disabled-friendly) coaches in passenger trains, impersonate a police officer, Railway Protection Force (RPF), or Special Task Force (STF) officer and extort fines from passengers. He would target labourers and young passengers in particular and fine them for smoking violations or ticket-related offences. In case of resistance, he would assault passengers. He is Rohit Tiwari, a 25-year-old native of Bariswan, a village in Bihar's Bhojpur district. Tiwari has been arrested for kidnapping and throwing a passenger off the train.

The case came to light after 21-year-old Nitin Kumar, a resident of Vaishali district, called his family and told them that he had been taken off the train for smoking. Kumar used to work as a laborer in Hyderabad and was returning home aboard the Hyderabad-Danapur special train 07091 when he was allegedly detained.

On the night of September 20, around 10 pm, Nitin's family received a call from him explaining that he had been smoking a cigarette when some individuals claiming to be police officers, apprehended him and forced him off the train. He mentioned that he was near Buxar station. Subsequently, the alleged officers took the phone from him and demanded Rs 10,000 from the family.

The family agreed to send the money the next morning and transferred Rs 5,000 to Nitin's account.

On the morning of September 21, another call was made from Nitin's phone demanding Rs 20,000. Throughout the day, the family received several calls from their son's number but could not speak to him.

The family grew suspicious. They then, along with the village head, approached the Buxar Railway Police Station and registered a case. A special investigation team was constituted under the leadership of Danapur Railway Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Kanchan Raj.

Based on technical and human intelligence, the police identified the suspects and launched raids. The team arrested Rohit Tiwari from the Mohansarai area between Buxar and Banaras.

During interrogation, Tiwari confessed to the crime. Based on his disclosure, the police recovered a body from the railway tracks between Ara and Jagjivan Halt. Kumar's father, Mukesh Rai, identified the body.

According to the police, the accused pushed Kumar off the moving train when he failed to extract money. Investigation has revealed that Tiwari had allegedly been committing such crimes for a long time. He would pose as a police official and extort ‘fines' from passengers.

Tiwari, according to the Railway Police, has a history of criminal cases registered against him. His involvement has been established in several incidents, including a theft case at Shahpur police station, a prior case at Buxar Railway Police Station, and a case registered at Danapur Railway Police Station on September 9.

It is reported that he had previously spent about 25 months in jail and was released on bail two months ago. During the arrest, the police recovered a brown wallet from the accused, reportedly belonging to one Kailash Kumar. The wallet contained several important documents, including ATM cards, a PAN card, a disability certificate and a voter ID card. Additionally, the accused's own Aadhaar card was recovered, and the matter is currently under investigation.

“A cunning criminal has been arrested. He has confessed to the crime of murdering a young man by pushing him off the train,” said Kanchan Raj, DSP, Government Railway Police, Patna. “He was on the run in connection with several previous cases. The matter is currently under investigation.”