Odisha Train Accident: Mishap blamed on fictional Muslim station officer
The officer on duty at the Bahanaga Bazar station—closest to the site of the accident—was SB Mohanty.
By Md Mahfooz Alam Published on 6 Jun 2023 11:22 AM GMT
(Screenshot of the tweet by the handle @raviagrawal3.)
Hyderabad: Several social media users are peddling a conspiracy theory about the June 2 train accident in Odisha’s Balasore. Twitter users have claimed that the station master at Bahanaga Bazar station is a Muslim by the name of Mohammad Sharif, who fled after the accident.
(Source: Twitter/@raviagrawal3)
Click here, here, here and here to see the posts.
Fact Check
NewsMeter found that the officer on duty at the Bahanaga Bazar station—closest to the site of the accident—was SB Mohanty. No officer named Mohammad Sharif was working at the station on the day of the accident. We ran a keyword search and came across a report by Odisha-based Kalinga TV, which said that the assistant station master at the Bahanaga Bazar station was SB Mohanty. It also said that Mohanty had fled from the spot after the accident.
Speaking to NewsMeter, Aditya Kumar Chaudhary, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) for South Eastern Railway, confirmed that there is no staffer named Mohammad Sharif at Bahanaga Bazar Station. He also refuted the claim that SB Mohanty fled after the accident. “Mohanty was present at the accident spot and was actively involved in the rescue operation,” Chaudhry added.
On June 4, Odisha police warned those giving a communal spin to the tragic accident. “It has come to notice that some social media handles are mischievously giving communal colour to the tragic train accident at Balasore. This is highly unfortunate. The investigation by the GRP, Odisha into the cause and all other aspects of the accident is going on,” the tweet said.
Hence, we conclude that any claim of a Muslim railway officer by the name of Mohammad Sharif being involved in the recent train accident in Odisha is false.
