Tuesday, March 14 2006 10:54 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Ranchi: Armed activists of Naxalite group CPI(Maoist) yesterday(Mar 13,2006) night captured a train carrying more than 100 passengers near a dense forest, beat up the driver near Heyagarha station in Jharkhand's Latehar district, about 100km from here.

However, all the passengers of the train were stated to be safe, General Railway Police spokesman S R Gandhi said.

The naxalites stopped the train travelling from Barkakhana in Jharkhand to Mughalsarai in Uttar Pradesh train close to a thick jungle between Heyagarha and Kumudi stations at around 1930 hours in protest against the killing of one of their comrades in police encounter in Palamau district on March 3, Inspector General of Police G C Verma said.

The incident took place in the midst of a bandh today called by the naxalites in Palamau division, which covers Latehar district, to protest the killing of Jagannath Koiry at a village in Palamau district, he said.

Gandhi said quoting train staff of two goods trains, which went past the held-up passenger train, that all the passengers were safe.

"There is no attack on the passengers. They (goods train staff) did not see any attack on passengers," he said.

Superintendent of Police of Latehar Subodh Prasad, along with a posse of policemen, was headed late tonight to the incident site which is about 100km from Ranchi.

CRPF commandant of the area P K Sharma said he is ready with his forces to go to the site but was waiting for the local police to guide them through the forest area.

Immediately after capturing the train, the naxalites roughed up the driver and cut off the communcation system by snatching the walkie talkie of the guarde, police sources said. Senior police and railway officials held a meeting at Dhanbad to chalk up the strategy to cope with the incident.

Deputy Inspector General of Police (Palamu range) Ram Lakhan Prasad told sources the train had been held up by the naxalites but all the passengers are safe.

Asked whether the security forces would come to rescue the train from Naxal siege, he said they had already moved from Latehar and would take the precaution to avoid any ambush by the Maoists.

"The forces have to move through difficult terrains, and should take all precaution while moving ahead," he added.

He denied any knowledge if the Naxalites had beaten any of the passengers. According to railway sources, all the trains on the route have been stopped at various points.

The passenger train which left Heyagarah station at 7.03 pm should have reached Kumudih railway station in another ten minutes when it was intercepted by the naxalites, the sources added.

They said efforts are on to establish contact with the driver and guard of the trains lights of which have been switched off, adding the walki-talkie instruments of the two have been snatched by the Maoists.

All the passengers are safe, they added.