Kozhikode: Arson and vandalism by anti-social elements has taken a new dimension. A scooter was found shattered into pieces on the railway track at Pallithazha near Chorod in Vadakara on Wednesday midnight. The scooter allegedly parked on the railway track was hit by the Kannur-bound Jan Shatabdi express at 11.30 pm. According to the police, the KL 18 Q 971 scooter was owned by a youth nearby and they suspect that a gang, driven by rivalry, was behind the act.
At the same time, another motorbike in the area was torched by unidentified persons. While locals were trying to douse the fire, it was noticed that the scooter of the youth in the neighbourhood was missing. Soon, police also joined in the search for the scooter and found it in shambles after the train ran over it.
Police said that another motorbike was torched in Pallithazha a few days back and added that all the incidents were connected. “Primarily it appears to be the handiwork of anti-social elements. But we are probing other angles too,” said Palakkad additional divisional railway manager (ADRM) T. Rajkumar. Railway police and local police had registered separate cases and started an inquiry.
