Twenty-five passengers of the Mumbai-Delhi August Kranti Rajdhani Express were robbed of valuables worth Rs 10-15 lakh in the early hours on Wednesday, apparently near Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh.
According to preliminary information received by the Railways Ministry, seven coaches of the train (A1, A3, B6, B7, B9, B10 and B5), all AC-2 tier and AC-3 tier, were targeted by thieves between 2 am and 3 am.
A senior official of the ministry told agencies that a three- member Railway Police Force escort team of the train would be interrogated in the matter.
The incident came to light when the train was arriving at Rajasthan's Kota junction and the passengers woke up to find their purses and small hand bags emptied and dumped near the toilets and vestibules, as per the FIRs lodged by some passengers with the Government Railway Police (GRP) at Nizamuddin Station.
While the RPF told the passengers to register their FIRs at the junction, most of them decided to do so in Nizamuddin.
Many passengers complained of missing cash. Some said their I-phones, other electronic devices were missing and complained of Aadhar card and other essential documents.
Some in their FIRs, alleged that they were drugged as the passengers slept soundly through the robbery. Many people even expressed apprehensions about the involvement of rail staff in the incident.
"Earlier, instances of dacoity have been reported and they are coming down now...We are taking all steps necessary. CCTV cameras are being installed in coaches to keep a check on such incidents. It's unfortunate that this has happened," Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said.
Sources in the ministry said that it was being probed if any railway staff was involved in the incident and if it was found to be true, strict action will be taken against them.