Indore: Two contract workers attached to the Gorakhpur-Bandra Express were arrested on Friday for allegedly tweeting about bomb threats to the train in order to disturb its schedule so that the duo could spend time with their families, Indore police in Madhya Pradesh said.
Sanitation workers Milan Rajak (44) and Pramod Mali (25) were held as the former had tweeted four times from his Twitter handle on May 11 and May 18 about bomb threats to the Gorakhpur-Bandra Express and similar acts were committed by the latter, Indore Superintendent of Police (Railways) Nivedita Gupta told PTI.
“The train was searched at Ratlam and other stations on both days and nothing was found. We were initially looking at a terror angle till we zeroed in on Rajak and Mali, who have confessed they uploaded such tweets to spend time with their families,” Gupta said.
“Rajak had used his mobile phone and Twitter account to create panic. Mali had become a father recently and wanted to spend time with his family. The two stay in Mumbai and claim their contractor would deploy them in Paschim Express within two hours of the arrival of Gorakhpur-Bandra Express,” the SP added.
They wanted to delay the arrival of the train at Bandra through such tweets so that the contractor did not get an opportunity to place then on board Paschim Express and they could go home to spend time with their families, the SP said.
Rajak and Mali have been charged under IPC, Information Technology Act and Railways Act provisions, she said.
—PTI

Press Trust of India