Seven arrested on charge of stealing railway signal cable in Kasaragod

The Railway Protection Force (RPF) arrested seven people, including six from Assam, for allegedly stealing railway signal cables between Nileshwaram and Cheruvathur. The operator of a scrap shop at Pariyaram, who allegedly purchased the copper extracted from the stolen cables, was also arrested.The arrested are Manowar Hussain, 32, Somir Ali, 35, Rasul Islam, 20, Noor Ameen Islam, 33, Sobikhul Ali Khan, 21, Anowar Hussain, 33, and scrap shop operator Mogal Hussain, 34, a native of Pariyaram.According to the RPF, the six migrant workers were staying in a rented house at V.V. Nagar in Cheruvathur. They were apprehended from Cheruvathur, Payyannur, Padanakkad, and Pariyaram. The vehicle allegedly used to transport the stolen material was seized from Padanakkad.The theft came to light during an inspection following a fault in the railway signalling system reported on October 18. The investigation revealed that around 80 metres of railway signal cables had been cut and stolen between Nileshwaram and Cheruvathur while engineering work was in progress. The theft reportedly took place around 10 p.m. on October 18.During interrogation, the accused reportedly revealed that they had sold the copper extracted from the stolen cable to a scrap shop owned by Mogal Hussain at Pariyaram.Meanwhile, RPF personnel said the removal of railway signalling cables could significantly affect train operations and compromise railway safety.The arrests were made by a team led by Palakkad RPF Crime Branch Inspector A.P. Deepak. Published - October 25, 2026 08:22 pm IST