A mild flutter was created at the Vijayawada railway station when a man allegedly possessing a double-headed snake — with a head each at both ends — was taken into custody by the Government Railway Police.

According to the GRP SHO, Srinivas Reddy, the man, Srinivas (35), a resident of Bantumilli village in Krishna district, was travelling in a train from Secunderabad to Machilipatnam and as part of the routine checking on train, the GRP personnel questioned him for suspicious movement. On enquiry he revealed that he was carrying a “double-headed” snake in a small carton, which he collected from a forest near Madhira in Khammam district. He further revealed that as per superstitious belief, “double-headed” snakes are said to be auspicious and are worth a few lakhs. He also said that he intended to sell it in Vijayawada.

Describing the snake, the SHO said that it looked like a well-fed earthworm and was about a metre long. “We handed over the snake to the forest department. The DFO also confirmed that the snake looked like a rare species but was not a double-headed one,” he said.