The Crime Investigation Department is investigating the death of Imran Shaikh, who was found unconscious inside a toilet at the Railway Protection Force post at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus after arriving in Mumbai seeking employment. Shaikh was taken to St George Hospital, where he was declared dead, prompting his family to allege custodial death.
Shaikh, a resident of Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh, had reached Mumbai two days before the incident. On September 20, he approached the RPF post at CSMT seeking help and information about trains, according to the report. His relatives have alleged that an argument broke out between Shaikh and RPF personnel and that he was assaulted.
Railway officials have denied the allegations. Central Railway officials said Shaikh attacked an RPF employee and that the employee was injured during the scuffle. They said Shaikh was subsequently kept at the RPF post and taken to a toilet at around 12.30 pm.
According to the officials, RPF personnel broke open the toilet door after Shaikh did not come out for about 10 minutes and found him lying unconscious. Police suspect that he may have consumed phenol, a disinfectant kept inside the toilet. The report does not establish whether this was the cause of death.
The Government Railway Police has registered an Accidental Death Report in connection with the incident. Shaikh’s body was sent to JJ Hospital for a post-mortem examination, whose findings are awaited to determine the exact cause of death.
The CID investigation will examine the circumstances leading to Shaikh’s death inside the RPF post, including the events following his interaction with railway personnel. Prashant Waghunde, Superintendent of Police, CID Konkan Range, has reportedly begun the inquiry.
The case places attention on what happens to people who seek assistance at major railway stations, particularly when an interaction with security personnel escalates into a dispute. The competing accounts from Shaikh’s family and railway officials will have to be assessed against the post-mortem findings and the investigation’s reconstruction of the incident.
Shaikh was carrying unreserved railway tickets for the Khandwa-Dadar and Dadar-CSMT routes. Investigators are also examining his movements before he reached the station. He is survived by his wife and two children. The immediate official milestones are the post-mortem report and the CID’s examination of the circumstances inside the RPF post.
