When J. Rajesh Prabhu, 24, boarded an early morning train to his native Madurai on January 13, 2008, to celebrate Pongal, little did the young engineer know that it would be his last journey. For, death awaited him on the Nagercoil-Tirupati-Mumbai Express.
Barely two hours after he boarded the train, some passengers saw him dead in a pool of blood and alerted railway officials on the train. His body, bearing multiple stab injuries, was removed from the train at Tirunelveli Junction and the Government Railway Police launched an investigation into the murder.
Unreserved ticket
Rajesh, who was working in a private firm in Gujarat, had reached Nagercoil on January 11, 2008, and took the train to Madurai two days later. Preliminary investigation revealed that he purchased an unreserved ticket and boarded the S-10 reserved compartment. His blood-stained body was found in the S-9 compartment later.
With no progress in the probe for almost three months, the victim’s father moved the Madras High Court seeking an investigation by the Crime Branch-CID of the Tamil Nadu police. On April 9, 2008, the case was handed over to the CB-CID. A special team, led by inspector S. Marirajan, examined several witnesses to find out the circumstances that led to the murder on the running train.
Heated argument
The team travelled on the same train from Nagercoil to Tirunelveli to get a feel of the journey and know about frequent travellers, scheduled/unscheduled stoppages, and vendors. It was during this probe that the team came across a crucial witness who gave an input that revealed certain unknown facts of the case. According to his information, the victim was seen engaged in a heated argument with a group of passengers who objected to his boarding a reserved coach with an unreserved ticket, says a report in the Tamil Nadu Police Journal.
Investigators examined the ticket used by the victim and found an entry made with the berth number and coach altered. The Travelling Ticket Examiner, who was on duty that day, confirmed that he had initially allotted a berth in the S-9 coach and then changed it to S-10 after an argument between Rajesh and some passengers.
Acting on this input, the police traced the passengers who had travelled in the berths, going by their addresses given in the ticket booking forms. The prosecution alleged that the suspects were angry with Rajesh and one of them followed him to the adjacent coach. At an opportune time, four others joined him and committed the murder.
A passenger who came shortly after the accused rushed out of the bay saw Rajesh with stab wounds and raised an alarm. A police constable, who was travelling in the same coach, saw the suspects fleeing and chased and intercepted them. However, they pleaded ignorance about the incident, the report said.
Inputs from officials
While four of the five accused persons continued their journey to Tirupati, one got down at Madurai and returned to Nagercoil to keep a watch on the developments. Railway officials confirmed that except the five passengers, no other reserved passenger boarded the train until it reached Tirunelveli. Investigators examined the other witnesses and concluded that the group of five was involved in the murder and arrested them on January 28, 2010.
Case ended in acquittal
However, the following year, the trial court acquitted all the accused, saying three witnesses were planted by the Investigation Officer. When the prosecution went on appeal, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court also upheld the trial court’s verdict in 2016.
But the matter did not end there. The accused moved the court saying they were victims of wrongful prosecution and demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation. They also sought suitable compensation for the malicious prosecution.
Ruling confirmed
Passing orders while confirming the lower court judgment, the High Court judge suspected the involvement of some powerful people who could get the investigation transferred from one officer to another. When the first Investigation Officer had zeroed in on a prime suspect, the case was transferred to another officer who proceeded on the same lines. The case was then transferred to the CB-CID, Tirunelveli, and then to the Madurai unit of the agency.
The court directed the CBI to conduct a fresh investigation and said the five petitioners were maliciously prosecuted. The State government was told to pay a compensation of ₹30 lakh to one of the accused persons who had lost a good job during the trial and ₹20 lakh each to the four others.
The mystery over who killed Rajesh Prabhu continues to this day.
