Imran Hossain Milon from Naogaon had planned to travel home from Dhaka by train amid a spate of arson attacks on buses during the BNP’s transport blockades and shutdowns, but changed his mind after arsonists had targeted trains as well.

He is in utter shock as the saboteurs appeared to have changed their tactic, causing a deadly train accident in Gazipur around 4:30am on Wednesday by cutting off parts of a railway line.

“Don’t travel by train. You’ve done a good job [by changing his travel plan],” Milon’s father-in-law told him by phone.

“Today’s [Wednesday’s] incident was terrifying. A more disastrous accident could have occurred had the train been travelling at a high speed,” Milon said.

“It gave me the shivers. I think in no country do protesters target railway lines.”

Journalists in Gazipur woke up to calls stating that six passenger coaches and the engine of Dhaka-bound Mohanganj Express derailed on Joydebpur-Mymensingh section, leading to the suspension of services on the route.

At least one passenger died and scores were injured as the derailed coaches piled up on a 300-metre stretch.

Police said an oxy-acetylene gas cutter was used to sever the line. The culprits remain unidentified.

The incident has left train passengers 'scared and anxious' as it is impossible for the operators to detect damage done to railway tracks in the dark of the night.

Lawyer Nahida Khanom said she was thinking about cancelling a planned trip to Pabna to visit her sister’s home after the end of her daughter’s exams.

“I had asked a person for train tickets because buses are torched during blockades. But, I’ve forbidden him to buy the tickets after seeing news of the accident,” she said.

“We were travelling safely even as buses or trucks were being targeted during protests. But the deadly accident caused by the severed line has frightened me,” said Liakat Ali Kazol, a resident of Netrakona.

Naren Sarker, another resident of Netrakona, said he travelled to and from Dhaka by train for his business. “Now it seems even trains aren’t safe. How will we travel now?”

‘IMPOSSIBLE TO DETECT’

Trains carry hundreds of passengers. So, an accident caused by a damaged line may lead to a disaster.

“Such an incident is unacceptable. Manual inspection won’t be able to prevent such incidents, because miscreants can cut the lines after the inspection,” said Professor Hadiuzzaman, director of the Accident Research Institute at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology.

He emphasised using sensor technology to detect such sabotage attempts.

In Europe, he said, a train sends a signal to the driver if it detects any damage to the lines 1 kilometre ahead of the train.

The BUET professor said this was not the first time Bangladesh has faced such a sabotage attempt. A similar incident occurred before the 2014 election, he said.

“We must depend on technology if we want modern and safe train services.”

Media reports on locals, especially children, warning train drivers of damage to lines by using clothes used as flags on a pole are not rare in Bangladesh. In some cases, people also alerted the authorities to dangers via phone.

“We don’t have a system or enough manpower to detect damage to railway lines at places other than the stations,” said Dr Shamsul Alam, another BUET teacher and transport expert.

“We can’t know if lines are damaged between two stations.”

Ansar personnel were deployed to the rail lines after several incidents of sabotage on the Dhaka-Chattogram route before the 2014 polls. 

Didar Ahmed, an additional inspector general of police at Bangladesh Railway Police, said they sought Ansar support again before the Jan 7 vote to secure the rail lines.

“We may be able to rearrange security if we get the allocation. Besides this, we are trying to involve people and raise awareness among them.”

AL, BNP BLAME EACH OTHER

The Awami League has blamed the BNP for the train accident.

“The BNP is no longer a political party. It has turned into a group of terrorists and militants. They are carrying out clandestine attacks,” said the ruling party’s Joint General Secretary Mahbub-Ul Alam Hanif.

The BNP denied any involvement in the train accident.

Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said some media reports trying to pass the responsibility onto the opposition actually stemmed from a conspiracy.

“Some media outlets have launched a deplorable misinformation campaign against the ongoing protests. It’s like: One doth the scath and another hath the scorn.