Mysore/Mysuru: In the second such incident, window panes of the premium Mysuru-Chennai Vande Bharat Express that travels between Mysuru and Chennai via Bengaluru were damaged after stones were pelted on the moving train near Arakkonam Railway Station on Saturday evening.

This is the second such incident in the recent past and on Feb. 26 this year, some people threw stones at the high-speed train between Krishnarajapuram (K.R. Puram) and Bengaluru Cantonment Railway Station and two windows were damaged.

In the latest incident, stones were pelted by miscreants at Mahendravadi and Anavardikhanpettail Railway Station in Tamil Nadu and the train was proceeding towards MGR Chennai Central at 6.04 pm from Mysuru. Though no passengers were injured, the broad window panes of seats 75 and 76 in coach C6 have been damaged.

A case has been registered under Section 154 (Endangering safety of persons travelling by railway by rash or negligent act or omission) of the Railway Act, 1989 against unknown persons by Arakkonam Police.

In November 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched this South India’s first-ever Vande Bharat train service under the Make-in-India initiative. The semi-high-speed service offers faster and more comfortable travel options between the three cities.

In a media statement, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) said that a special team is working on the case. Frequent incidents of people throwing stones at passing Vande Bharat Express trains have been reported recently.

In March this year, a 21-year-old man from Vaniyambadi was arrested by the Jolarpet Railway Police for stoning and breaking the window panes of Vande Bharat Express. Pelting stones at trains is a non-bailable offence.

As per Section 152 of the Railways Act, if any person throws stones at a train and such an act is likely to endanger the safety of passengers on the train, he shall be punishable with life imprisonment or with imprisonment for a term which may extend to ten years.