Hoshiarpur, December 10
The alleged negligence on the part of railway employee claimed two lives in the district on Sunday night.

Manjit Singh and Navjot Singh, both of Jhinger Kalan village, were killed and two others, identified as Amrit Singh of Sainpur and Talwinder Singh of Jhinger Kalan, were seriously injured when a DMU train bound for Pathankot from Jalandhar hit the Indica car, in which the four were travelling, at a manned crossing near Jhinger Kalan village.

Both the injured were admitted to the Civil Hospital, Dasuya, from where they were referred to the Civil Hospital, Hoshiarpur.

Meanwhile, relatives of deceased along with villagers of Jhinger Kalan, staged a dharna and blocked rail traffic near the railway crossing for three-and-a-half hours today to show their resentment against the Railways over its failure to avert the accident. The agitators squatted on the railway track demanding compensation and government job to the kin of the deceased.

Later, Hoshiarpur MP Santosh Chaudhary intervened and got sanctioned Rs 2 lakh each to victims’ families as compensation from the Railways. She also assured the protestors that she would make sure that the deceased’s kin get government jobs. Avinash Kumar, station master, Dasuya Railway Station, said gateman Sardar Masih allegedly failed to close the crossing gates despite being informed about the train.

Ram Parkash, Sub Inspector of the GRP, Jalandhar railway station, said Sardar Masih had been arrested under Sections 304 and 337 of the IPC and Section 175 of the Railway Act for negligence.