22 Sikh pilgrims die in railway crossing crash
At least 22 Sikh pilgrims – 19 from the same family – were killed yesterday when a train smashed into a van in the east of Pakistan, authorities said.
The vehicle’s driver was crossing an unmanned level crossing when it was hit by an oncoming train near the small city of Farooqabad.
“The crossing was unmanned and the driver of the van took a hasty decision by driving onto the tracks,” Pakistan Railways spokeswoman Quratul Ain told AFP, adding that the passengers were all Sikh pilgrims.
The Shah Hussain Express train was heading to the city of Lahore from the southern metropolis of Karachi, the spokesman added.
“Around 20 people lost their lives in [the] tragic collision. Two injured succumbed to injuries later, raising the death toll to 22,” Pakistan’s ministry of interior said in a statement.
According to police, the dead were all residents of Peshawar, home to most of Pakistan’s nearly 40,000 Sikhs.
Earlier, local police spokesman Wajid Abbas confirmed that at least 19 dead were from the same family.
In total, there were 30 pilgrims in the van.
No train passengers were injured in the crash that occurred around 1.30pm.
Sheikhupura district police officer Salahuddin said that there were two more coaches that took a different route and are safely on their way.
Following the crash, the divisional engineer was suspended, a railways ministry statement said.
The pilgrims were returning from a visit to Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak, near the megacity of Lahore.
Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted that he was “deeply saddened” by the deaths.
As prime minister, Khan has overseen the construction of a special border crossing, called the “Kartarpur corridor”, allowing Sikhs from India to visit holy sites in Pakistan, despite continued hostile relations between the two countries.
Images broadcast on local television showed the mangled van on the train tracks.
Pakistan’s minister of interior vowed to “reach to the root cause of the incident and hold the ones responsible for this accountable”.
“Investigations are underway to figure out negligence behind it,” a district police officer Ghazi Salahuddin told Reuters.
Pakistan Railways also said an inquiry had been ordered.
Accidents often happen at unmanned railway crossings in Pakistan which frequently lack barriers and sometimes signals.
The railway network has seen decades of decline due to corruption, mismanagement and lack of investment.
Last October at least 74 people were killed and dozens injured after cooking gas cylinders exploded on a train packed with pilgrims in Punjab province.