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Anand Mohan Sahay in Patna
The report of the Aurangabad district magistrate and the superintendent of police on the cause of the Rajdhani Express accident near Rafiganj, in which 119 people were killed and more than 200 injured, has dismissed the 'sabotage theory' bandied about by Union Railways Minister Nitish Kumar and other officials.
The Bihar government had deputed the Aurangabad officials, under whose jurisdiction the accident occurred, to conduct a probe after the Centre had asked for a report.
In their two-page report the officials said that fishplates were found intact, though eight nuts and bolts were missing.
"They have also videographed the intact fishplates," a government source said.
The report, the source said, contended that if removal of the fishplates caused the accident, then all the nuts and bolts, instead of just eight, should have come out. It also pointed out that the engine and 12 coaches, travelling in excess of 120 kmph, had crossed that point before derailing, the source added.
The report also said that there was no miscreant activity in that area before or after the accident
Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi and the ruling Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Laloo Prasad Yadav had pointed fingers at the 'weak condition' of the bridge over Dhawa river for the derailment.
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