Chandigarh, October 23: Punjab Congress leaders, including the state unit chief Sunil Jakhar, and Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, on Monday lashed out at the Centre and the Indian Railways while putting the blame of Amritsar train tragedy on the driver of DMU (diesel multiple unit) train.
Raising questions over the functioning of Indian Railways, the Local Government Minister asked, “Why the driver of the train was given clean chit within six hours and why his name was not revealed? Is it possible when a train is approaching guards can’t see it?”
Sidhu also pointed fingers on the Centre saying that right from the railway engine, police, guards, tracks, all belonged to the Centre and the FIR was also lodged by the Centre.
“The land (track on which people were standing), the engine, the driver, the guards and the police (GRP) all belong to the railways,” said Sidhu while responding to media query asking whether the main organisers of the event Mithu Madan would be held guilty.
Sidhu’s statement comes after the Union Minister of State for Railways Manoj Sinha stated that there was no negligence on part of the Railways.
Indian Railways has ruled out an inquiry into the incident, attributing the tragedy to the trespassing of Dussehra revellers. The driver of the Jalandhar-bound DMU train has been given a clean chit. Railway Board chairman Ashwani Lohani said that he could not be blamed as “he was given a green signal”.
“GRP patrol failed to detect the tall effigy which had been erected on the place a day prior to the event. The police permission was for the walled ground…The track, around 60 feet away from the outer wall, is the property of railways,” said Sidhu.
He questioned why the DMU was running at such a high speed on the day of accident. “Why the guard at railway crossing, which is just 200 meters away from the accident site, could not see that people were standing on the track?” he questioned.
Jakhar pointed that even after minor railway accidents, the enquiry by Commissioner of Railway Safety is must. “It is perhaps the first instance in which the enquiry was not marked which raises many questions,” he said while adding that the way Railways had given clean-chit to itself instantly is wrong.
He said that the people have seen that the train speed was too high. “All the investigation being carried out would identify all those responsible for the mishap,” he added.
Opposition parties have all along been seeking action against those who allowed the event near the railway tracks. SAD core committee on Sunday demanded immediate sacking of Sidhu and registration of a murder case against his wife and Dussehra event organisers, saying that they were “responsible for abetting” the Amritsar tragedy.
