SUKKUR, July 13: At least 50 per cent passengers of bogies No13, 14, 15, 16 and lower A/C of the 146-Down Sukkur Express were left stranded at the Sukkur Railway Station when the Pakistan Railways’ officials allowed the train to depart from Sukkur just to please Federal Minister for Railways Ghaus Bux Khan Mahar.

The stranded passengers lodged a strong protest with the railway officials, who allowed the train to leave the station only after a few minutes without letting the passengers board the train so that they could show to the minister that the train was running on schedule.

One of the passengers, Mohammad Haseenullah, said that the train arrived at the platform at 21:52 instead of its arrival time of 21:30 as a result of which it was already 22 minutes behind schedule.

Many of the passengers were loading their luggage in their bogies when the railway guard, carrying out the instructions of the PR administration, blew the whistle and the train left for Rohri, leaving behind hundreds of passengers, including women and children.

Many of the passengers became panicky on seeing the train leave. They started raising slogans against railway officials.

WOMAN KILLED: A 30-year-old woman was killed by her stepson, Muneer Ahmed, in the Budani village, near Kashmore, on Saturday.