Friday, May 13 2005 19:22 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Allahabad: Angry over the suspension today (May 13, 2005) of a senior Railway officer, who carried out checking in an AC first class compartment of a train in which some MPs were travelling last month (April), Railway employees in Allahabad went on a lightening strike disrupting the movement of trains.

Additional Divisional Railway Manager (ADRM), Allahabad, A K Singh, who had checked the MPs travelling in the Rajdhani Express was suspended today on the charges of carrying out an inspection at a late hour and also allowing media persons to enter the compartment in which they were travelling on April 29, North Central Railway spokesman R P Shrivastava said Allahabad.

Singh was transferred to Varanasi after the incident. Shrivastava claimed that the working at the station and other offices which were disrupted at around 13:00hrs (IST) resumed following an assurance by the General Manager I P S Anand that their grievances would be conveyed to the concerned authorities.

A K Singh had tried to evict some supporters of a group of MPs from Bihar, who included Union Minister Shakeel Ahmed of Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal's (RJD) Raghunath Jha, Devendra Yadav and Magnilal Mandal, when they were found travelling without tickets.

Devendra Yadav had allegedly told the ADRM that he could not check the bonafide of the passengers at late hour of the night and threatened to have him suspended.

Acting on a complaint by MPs, Railway Minister Laloo Prasad suspended Singh for alleged misbehaviour with them in Kanpur and Allahabad stations.