Chennai: RPF staff hand over misplaced bag to couple

Chennai: An elderly couple was shocked on Monday night after their suitcase was misplaced on a train. The bag had contained 32 sovereigns of gold, four silver bangles and Rs 5,000 cash.

The incident occurred when the couple identified as Govardhan (73), an ex-army personnel, and his wife Panchavarnam, were travelling to Rameswaram for a wedding. While they were boarding the train, Govardhan kept their suitcase in a compartment, while he helped his wife get onto the train, as she had difficulty in walking, police said. Since they were late, the train had started to move.

Govardhan then asked some passengers near the bag to keep watch on it, till he returned after putting his wife on her berth. But, after taking his wife to her berth, he realised that he had forgotten the compartment where he had left the suitcase.

Panicking, he searched compartment after compartment, but could not find it. Meanwhile, Railway Police Force personnel who were on their rounds on the train found the suitcase, and assuming it to be an unclaimed baggage, handed it over to the RPF personnel at Tambaram.

The couple came to know about this only after the train had crossed Tambaram, police said. They then alighted at Chengalpattu and returned to Tambaram via an EMU, and claimed the baggage.