India

Andhra Police Find No Evidence of Physical or Sexual Violence in Assam Woman’s Train Death

By PTI

The Andhra Pradesh police investigating the death of Himsri Boro, an Assam woman whose body was discovered near Penubarthi village on the railway tracks between Vizianagaram and Srikakulam Road on October 7, have stated that the post‑mortem report ruled out physical and sexual violence. Boro had boarded the delayed Vivek Express on October 6. Srikakulam Superintendent of Police KV Maheshwar Reddy told PTI that the train had already started moving when she boarded and the compartment was already crowded with more than 100 passengers. He said Boro could not move further inside the coach and had to remain near the entry. Reddy dismissed social media claims that the compartment contained only male passengers, noting that both male and female passengers were present. He said the investigation must determine whether Boro fell accidentally or if another factor was involved. An Andhra Pradesh government release on October 9 mentioned that a fellow passenger claimed Boro had fallen off a running train. Reddy also said claims that Boro had made a distress call about boys harassing her were untrue. He added that Boro had messaged a friend that she could not find a seat because the train was crowded with many male passengers and that she felt uncomfortable. No evidence of abuse was found in her messages or in a video, and her phone was recovered near her body and sent for forensic analysis. Police are also investigating why no one stopped the train by pulling the chain if Boro had fallen off accidentally. Reddy said that even a minor argument on a crowded night train would likely have alerted passengers and prompted intervention. Two passengers who disembarked in West Bengal said they heard other passengers discuss a girl falling from the train. Reddy said the police are contacting all passengers, noting that the large number of unreserved passengers will make the investigation time‑consuming. He emphasized that the case is still under probe and no conclusions have been reached.