Police and passengers at the spot where Sonu Chauhan fell onto the tracks between Malad and Goregaon
Travelling on a train's footboard proved fatal for a 14-year-old after he slipped and fell off between Malad and Goregaon stations on Monday afternoon, while returning home from school.
The Borivli GRP has filed an accidental death report (ADR) and is taking down statements of his friends who were traveling with him, to ascertain the sequence of events leading up to the death.
Sonu Chauhan, a Std VIII student, was a resident of Goregaon. His parents have been out of town for the past 10 days, and he was staying with his brother and his wife at their house near Film City in Goregaon. He had recently left his school in Goregaon to take admission in a school at Malad.
Said a neighbour, "Sonu was a calm kid and his parents had great expectations from him. As he had shifted to a school in Malad, he used to travel by local between Goregaon and Malad stations, and this was new for him. He and a few other boys would commute together every day."
After he fell down, his friends told the authorities at Goregaon station, while a motorman informed the Malad stationmaster. Railway cops took Sonu to the civic-run Bhagwati Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival.
"He would leave for school at seven in the morning and return by one in the afternoon," said his elder brother, who was not in a condition to continue speaking.
At the time of the accident, he was at a hospital in Jogeshwari for his wife's treatment.
The neighbour said, "Sonu's elder brother has been shattered by the incident. He has been running around alone for all the paperwork with the police and the school. Sonu's parents will reach Mumbai by Wednesday evening."
Senior Inspector S D Bagal of Borivli GRP said, "Our primary investigations have revealed that Sonu and his friends used to travel on the footboard every day, from Malad station to Goregaon station, which falls right after. It is believed that he slipped off the footboard and died. His left hand got detached and he received severe injuries on his stomach, head and other parts of the body. The incident happened in the afternoon and the train was not even crowded at the time."
The cop added, "Travelling on the footboard should always be avoided. A life has been lost for no reason."