Indian Railways responded to shocking allegations made by Kanika Devrani, a travel vlogger, that she was drugged and robbed in a 2AC coach of the Brahmaputra Mail while travelling from Delhi to Guwahati. The incident apparently happened when the train halted at New Jalpaiguri Junction Railway Station (NJP) in West Bengal. She claimed that her co-passengers were also looted. Posting a video on Instagram, she claimed that a passenger who was in the upper seat sprayed something on her. “I couldn’t sense anything”. She added that she had a conversation with that man as he was asking for seat numbers.
Also Read | Did Meta Offer $100m Signing Bonus? Ex-OpenAI Employee Replies To Sam Altman’s Claim
Responding to the video, Railway Seva (@RailwaySeva), wrote, “For necessary action escalated to the concerned official.”
What did Kanika Devrani say?
In the video, labelled “Indian Railway is not safe”, she claimed that a stranger without a ticket allegedly boarded the 2AC coach at New Jalpaiguri Junction Railway Station and sprayed something, knocking Devrani and another passenger unconscious. When she regained consciousness, her iPhone 15 Pro Max was missing.
Also Read | MIT Researchers Test Innovative Device To Tap Water From Air
“As First class AC tickets weren’t available, I had booked a 2nd AC ticket from New Delhi to Guwahati on Brahmaputra Mail. I was of the opinion that it is all safe. The train had halted at New Jalpaiguri station in West Bengal, I was asleep and my phone was put under the charge,” she said. “Someone came to my berth, my phone was under my pillow, and took it. First of all, how can the Railways staff let in someone unknown without a ticket? I don’t know who the person is.”
Devrani used the Find My Device app to track her phone’s live location, which showed it was in West Bengal’s Malda. She tagged @WBPolice and @malda_police on X, urging them to take action.
Kanika alleged that the police and the Railway Protection Force (RPF) were uncooperative, despite knowing the phone’s live location.
Social media raised concerns about passenger safety
The incident has raised concerns about passenger safety on trains, particularly in 2AC coaches. Many social media users have demanded better security measures, including CCTV cameras in coaches and increased patrols during unscheduled stops.
“It’s sad but it’s hard truth of India ..very sad to listen this,” one user commented on Devrani’s video.
Another said, “Is it that easy that anyone can enter the 2S class without the ticket even under the supervision of your employers? This is the safety you’re providing to your passengers and especially to females? You must look into this matter and take action as quickly as possible.”
