RANCHI: The body of a Jan Suraaj Party functionary who went missing while travelling to Patna by train was found near railway tracks in Ranchi on Tuesday, police said.
Devpalik Gupta, 31, who worked as the party’s digital communications manager, went missing from the Ranchi-Patna Janshatabdi Express on Monday, they said.
His body was found near the railway tracks in Jarwadih village, close to pole number 379/18 on the Ranchi-Muri line, Angara police station officer-in-charge Gautam Kumar Rajwar told PTI.
"Preliminary findings suggest that he died after accidentally falling from the moving train," Rajwar said.
"The body will be sent to the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Ranchi for post-mortem examination. An unnatural death case will be registered based on statements from the deceased's family members," he added.
Gupta's colleague Gautam Kumar told PTI that they had boarded the train at Ranchi railway station on Monday and it departed around 2.25 pm.
About 10 minutes later, Gupta, an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi, told his companions that he was going to the pantry car to get something to eat but did not return, Kumar said.
"We then left our berth and went to the pantry car next to our coach, but we did not find him. We checked every coach, but he was nowhere on the train," he said.
When the train stopped at Muri Junction, they lodged a complaint with the Government Railway Police, following which a search was started.
(With inputs from PTI)