Sujith Sonawane (17), who went missing on Tuesday night, was found dead near the tracks of Rabale station on Thursday. The police suspect Sonawane fell off a train and died.
Sonawane was a resident of Rabale and attended evening classes in a college in Thane. He left home on Tuesday at around 5 p.m. for his classes and did not return. His family registered a kidnapping complaint with Rabale police on Wednesday. On Thursday, at around 10.30 a.m., the railway control room received a call about a body found near the tracks.
Senior police inspector Pradeep Tidaar said: “The CCTV footage from Rabale station showed Sonawane hanging from the door of a local train. We suspect that he crashed into a pole, suffered head injuries and fell off the train.”
However, Sonawane’s family claimed that he did not fall to his death. Sujith’s father Shyamrao Sonawane said: “When he did not return by 10 p.m., we called him. But the calls were answered by an unknown person. We rushed to the police station to lodge a complaint, but the police asked us to wait. If he had fallen from the train then why didn’t anybody notice it and why was his body found only after 30 hours? We had also searched near the tracks on Wednesday and didn’t find his body.”
Mr. Tidaar said the body probably escaped everyone’s notice as it was found near a bushy area. The police attempted to make calls to his phone, but they kept getting diverted.
Mr. Tidaar said, “The case is under investigation and as of now there is no reason to suspect foul play.”