Odisha train accident: Rahul Gandhi demands resignation of Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav

New Delhi: The Congress on Sunday demanded the resignation of Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav over the Odisha train accident and attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he should accept the responsibility of making ‘all is well’. Even though the critical infrastructure of the Indian Railways is “lying in neglect”. The opposition party asked whether the Prime Minister would take responsibility for the “deadliest train tragedy” of this century. It also asked who was responsible for ignoring the warnings and suggestions of experts, parliamentary committee and CAG reports.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that Modi was busy flagging off trains without paying attention to railway safety. He called for fixing accountability of all positions from top to bottom to prevent such incidents in future.

Former Congress President Rahul Gandhi also targeted the government and said that the Prime Minister should immediately seek the resignation of the Railway Minister.

No accountability even after more than 270 deaths! The Modi government cannot run away from taking responsibility for such a painful accident.

270+ No job even after death!

The Modi government cannot take responsibility for such a tragic accident.

The Prime Minister should resign from the Railway Minister! — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) June 4, 2023

Addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters here, Congress MP Shaktisinh Gohil and AICC’s Publicity and Media Department chief Pawan Khera alleged that the Odisha train tragedy was a man-made catastrophe due to complete negligence, serious system lapses, inefficiency. Was. And the narcissistic sense of ‘knowing everything’ of the Modi government.

Khera said the prime minister had a “kavach” that no other PM had, which shielded him from public scrutiny and television debates. He urged the media not to provide that shield to the PM.

Khera said, “This ‘Kavach’ does not save railway passengers but your (prime minister’s) image.”

The opposition party also said that Modi should accept part of the responsibility for the “mess” that it alleged his government had inflicted on the Indian Railways and the people.

Khera said that Prime Minister Modi, who has declared that the guilty will be punished, should first start with his Railway Minister.

“Clearly and categorically, we demand the resignation of Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav. Nothing less than that,” he said.

“Resignation means taking responsibility on moral grounds, there is neither responsibility nor morality here, do you think any resignation will come? We don’t know from whom we should ask for resignation.”

Modi ji, you decide whose resignation you want. Bahadur Shastri, Nitish Kumar and Madhavrao Scindia resigned.”

Khera further said, “Pran jaye par PR na jaye – you have to give up this principle now.”

In a series of tweets in Hindi, Kharge questioned the Modi government and alleged that “PR gimmicks” had made the system’s functioning “hollow”.

Referring to the three lakh vacant posts in the railways, he said that the posts for which recruitment is done through the Prime Minister’s Office at the higher level are also lying vacant. He asked why these posts were not filled in the last nine years.

The Congress president said the Railway Board has recently accepted that acute shortage of manpower due to long working hours of loco pilots is the main reason for the rising number of accidents and asked why the posts were not filled.

Kharge claimed that the Principal Chief Operating Manager of South Western Railway zone sought to fix the signaling system on February 8, 2023, citing an incident in Mysore where two trains narrowly escaped collision.

Why didn’t the Railway Ministry take action on this, he said.

Kharge said the Parliamentary Standing Committee in its 323rd report criticized the Railways for the “disregard” shown by the Railway Board towards the recommendations of the Commission of Railway Safety (CRS).

It was said that CRS investigates only 8 to 10 per cent of the accidents. Then why was the CRS not strengthened, he asked.

The Congress president said, “As per the latest CAG audit report, nearly seven out of 10 train accidents between 2017-18 and 2020-21 were due to train derailments.”

“According to the CAG, 79 per cent funds were reduced in the National Rail Safety Fund (RRSK), while Rs 20,000 crore was to be provided every year. Why has there been a drastic drop in the volume of track renewal works?” the Congress chief said.

The train collision avoidance system developed by India’s Research Designs and Standards Organization (RDSO) in 2011 was renamed by the Modi government as “Kavach” and was demonstrated by the railway minister himself in March 2022, he said and asked whether it would be Why has it been implemented only on 4% routes so far?

In an apparent reference to the Vande Bharat trains, he said, “Modi ji, you are busy flagging off white trains every day, but pay no attention to rail safety.”

Accountability of posts from top to bottom has to be fixed so that such accidents can be stopped. Kharge said that only then the victims of this tragedy would get justice.

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also demanded Vaishnav’s resignation.

“Following the moral path of Lal Bahadur Shastri ji, Nitish Kumar ji, Madhav Rao Scindia ji, shouldn’t the railway minister resign?” He said.

Earlier, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh alleged that railway safety was compromised in a “PR campaign” by the prime minister and the railway minister.

“Recall that Lal Bahadur Shastri resigned in November 1956 in the wake of the Ariyalur train accident and Nitish Kumar did so after the Gasel train accident in August 1999,” he said in a tweet.

In the presser, Gohil and Kheda questioned the government and asked when Modi would ask for the resignation of his railway minister.

He alleged that Vaishnav’s “over the top propaganda, theatrics and PR gimmickry has led to serious lapses, criminal negligence and complete disregard for the safety and security of the Indian Railways”.

“PM Modi himself is responsible for flagging off the Vande Bharat Express trains. He is responsible for creating this ‘All is Well’ aspect in Indian Railways even as the critical, sensitive and critical infrastructure of Indian Railways There is a lack of neglect,” Gohil and Khera said in their statement.

Khera claimed that before the accident, Vaishnav skipped presentations on safety at the Railway Chintan Shivir as he had to go to flag off the Vande Bharat train.

Gohil said the railway minister should take responsibility but “Modi and ethics move in opposite directions”.

Congress general secretary organization KC Venugopal criticized the Centre, saying this happened because the Modi government failed to take necessary security and maintenance measures.

“It ignored several earlier warnings about track and signal failures, including South Western Railway’s latest warning on February 9, 2023, which pointed to the need to improve signaling infrastructure,” he said. ”

Venugopal said, “Their sole focus has been on the Prime Minister’s PR through mega launch events. The government should be ashamed of what has happened and the Prime Minister should answer to the entire country.”

The Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express and the Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express, carrying around 2,500 passengers, and a goods train met with an accident near Bahanaga Bazar station in Balasore around 7 pm on Friday.

At least 275 people were killed and over 1,100 were injured in the accident, the worst rail accident in India in nearly three decades.