Man stabs passenger to death on Churchgate-Nalasopara local train with undetected knife

A 30-year-old man allegedly stabbed a fellow passenger to death inside a moving Churchgate-Nalasopara fast local train on Tuesday night, after carrying a knife undetected in his bag for two months. The accused, Roshan Suvarna, who routinely travelled between Mira Road and Andheri, was arrested by the Government Railway Police (GRP) for the murder of Mayank Lohar.

According to the GRP, Suvarna was allegedly under the influence of alcohol when he repeatedly stabbed Lohar in the chest and stomach during the journey. Suvarna, who ran a barcode-printing and photocopying business near the Andheri cargo complex with his father, held a monthly AC local train pass and regularly commuted with the weapon.

During police questioning, Suvarna claimed he had picked up two knives from a friend’s kitchen knife shop two to three months ago. He stated he intended to use the smaller knife for cutting barcode paper at work, while the larger knife remained in his bag. However, Suvarna’s family told investigators that he carried the knife for self-defence because he frequently returned home late at night.

Suvarna was produced before a Borivali court on Thursday, which remanded him to police custody until June 30.

The fatal attack has drawn sharp attention to security vulnerabilities across the suburban railway network. Although baggage scanners, metal detectors, and CCTV cameras were installed at several stations following the 26/11 terror attacks, officials acknowledged that most of this equipment is currently defunct or unused.

The incident follows another attack five months ago, when college lecturer Alok Singh was stabbed at Malad station by a passenger carrying a sharp weapon. GRP officers noted that random checks often draw objections from commuters, and a Metro-like security system with increased police strength would be required to implement comprehensive screening.