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The NIA investigations revealed that Saifi, a Delhi resident, had chosen Kerala for the act involving terror and arson as he wanted to commit his Jihad act in a location where he would not be recognised
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday i.e. September 29 filed chargesheet against the sole accused in the Kerala train arson case, in which three passengers, including a child, were killed and nine others injured.
The chargesheet has been filed against accused Sharukh @Sharukh Saifi, a 27-year-old resident of Shaheerbagh, New Delhi.
Saifi has been charged under various sections of IPC, UAPIA, Railways Act, and POPP Act.
As per the press release of the NIA issued on September 30, 2023, Saifi is accused of committing the terror act by setting the D1 Coach of Alappuzha Kannur Executive Express on fire on 2nd April 2023.
The NIA Chargesheet says Saifi in the gory case, had thrown and sprinkled Petrol on the passengers and set the bogey on fine with a lighter with the intention to kill people.
The press release stated that Saifi had boarded the moving Alappuzha Kannur Executive Express, committed the terror act, and continued to travel in the same train til Kannur, before escaping to Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, from where he was eventually arrested. He had traveled to Kerala from New Delhi on 31st March 2025 and reached the state on 2nd April.
The NIA investigations revealed that Saifi purchased petrol from a Petrol burk in Shoranur and a lighter from a nearby store at Shoranur Railway Station and he had chosen Kerala for the act involving terror and arson as he wanted to commit his Jihad act in a location where he would not be recognised.
He had intended to return to normal life after the commission of the act, aimed at creating terror in the minds of the general public, as per the press release.
"The accused was self-radicalised through various online propaganda material avaliable on social media in favour of violent extremism and Jihad, as propagated by radical islamic preachers of Indian and foreign nationalities. In this process, he followed radical and hardline Islamic Preachers including those who are Menk and Pakistan-based, on social media platforms. He had committed the arson as a Jihadi terror act in pursuance of the online radicalisation," the press release further stated.
The case was initially registered as FIR No. 38/2023 at Kozhikode Railway Police Station, Kerala State, and later by Special Investigation Team, Kerala. On 17th April, the NIA took over the investigations of the case RC-01/2025/NIAKOC) on orders from MHA. During the course of its investigations, NIA conducted searches in 10 locations in Delhi and seized digital devices. Several witnesses were questioned and CCTV footage from the Railway Station were also seized
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