NEW DELHI: Leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi criticized the Centre on Saturday following a train accident in Tamil Nadu, emphasizing that no lessons have been learned despite numerous fatalities. He questioned, “How many more families must be destroyed before this government wakes up?” Gandhi asserted that accountability starts at the top.
On Friday, an express train, traveling at 75 km/h, collided with a stationary goods train as it mistakenly entered a loop line instead of the main line, railway officials reported.Several passengers sustained injuries, and one coach caught fire.
In a post on X, Gandhi noted, “The Mysuru-Darbhanga train accident mirrors the horrific Balasore accident—a passenger train colliding with a stationary goods train.” He further remarked, “Despite many lives lost in numerous accidents, no lessons are learned. Accountability starts at the top. How many more families must be destroyed before this government wakes up?”
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also condemned the Centre over the incident. In a post on her WhatsApp channel, she stated, “Train accidents have become so common in the country that despite occurring one after another, neither any accountability is being fixed by the government nor any action is being taken.”
“Crores of common people of the country are forced to travel in trains running on the wheels of fear and chaos, risking their lives because the government has turned its back on the responsibility of safe train travel,” Priyanka Gandhi added. She likened the incident to the Balasore accident, asking, “When will this series going on for months stop? When will accountability be fixed?”
Meanwhile, the Railway Board has confirmed that no casualties have been reported in the passenger-freight train collision in the Ponneri-Kavarapettai section of the Chennai Rail Division. Dilip Kumar, Executive Director of Information and Publicity at the Railway Board, issued a video message soon after the accident, stating, “We received information of the collision of the Bagmati Express with a freight train at the Kavarapettai station in the Chennai Division. Rescue and relief teams reached the accident site immediately.”