Pranav K Choudhary, a journalist from Bihar, was on the Dhanbad-Patna Intercity Express which was attacked by over 100 Maoists today. He had boarded the train from Jasidih in Deoghar less than two hours before the attack.
He tells us his experience:It was 1:15 pm and there was an eerie of silence in the train. It had stopped after crossing the Jamui station and was in the middle of the Kudra Forest. The densely-forested hilly area has no civilian population and is known to be a hotbed for Maoist activities. Initially, I thought someone may have pulled the chain - an annoying but common occurrence in trains travelling through Bihar.
But as I looked out of the window, my worst fears came true. Several young men and women in their camouflage uniforms were emerging from the forest and were slowly walking towards the train. All of them had their faces covered and seemed in their early 20s. They were carrying rifles and country-made pistols. I saw some carrying what looked like bombs.
I was sitting in an AC three tier compartment, and we immediately closed all four doors of our boogie. A few minutes later, we heard banging on the doors. By this time, all of us were laying on the floors of the train in case the Maoists fire.
And soon, there was the dreaded ear-shattering noise. The Maoists had begun firing on the train.
As bullets rained, I could hear people chanting prayers. By this time, I was praying too. Though deep inside, I had the feeling it may be in vain.
The Maoists, despite their firing and explosions, could not enter the train through the AC compartments. They finally got in through the non-AC sleeper class boogies. Thankfully, they did not hurt the passengers. They asked them to get down.
Through the window, I could see at least a hundred passengers standing outside the train, panic written all over their faces. Nobody knew what happens next.
The Maoists, I heard later, took their time in sifting through the luggage of the passengers. They took what they liked, left what didn't catch their fancy. But at no point of time, they seemed to be in a hurry. Meanwhile, I had been frantically calling the police and other officials for help. There was no response. I texted all my contacts - time was running out, it seemed.
After more than half hour, seemed like an eternity though, the Maoists finally de-boarded the train. And as they had arrived, they vanished into the forests of Kudra. There was still no response from the police. We stayed on the floor. The nightmare may not be over.
At around 2:30 pm, the train started moving. There was relief. Suddenly, there was panic. What if the Maoists had hijacked the train? No one had any clue. No one dared to find out. We stayed still.
A few minutes later, we saw the next station, Kiul, approaching. Thankfully, the train stopped at the platform. There was police presence there and the relief operation began. I heard later three people had died in the attack.
The train started again at 7 pm.
In my two decades of experience as a journalist in Bihar, I have not heard of such an audacious attack by Maoists in the state. They usually attack in the dark. This happened in broad daylight and seemed meticulously planned. This nightmare might be over, but I shudder to think what's next.
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