New Delhi, June 5 (Agency) The Congress on Sunday launched a scathing attack at the centre’s BJP-led government over the train accident in Odisha’s Balasore district, accusing it of “negligence and incompetence”, and also demanded resignation of Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters, Congress MP Shaktisinh Gohil and party’s spokesperson Pawan Khera, posed a volley of questions to the BJP government over the train accident that claimed 288 lives. “This is not a natural calamity. This is ‘man-made’ devastation caused by utter negligence, serious lapses in the system, incompetence, and a ‘narcissistic’ sense of ‘know it all’ attitude by the Modi government clubbed with high decibel PR which exposed the hollowness at every level of railway governance,” they said.
Taking a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, they said, “PM, who has announced that guilty would be punished, must first start with his Railway Minister. We demand the resignation of the Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. “Echoing a similar sentiment, senior Congress leader KC Venugopal in a tweet wrote, “The death toll is steadily rising. More and more details coming out about how this tragedy unfolded. So massive was this operational failure that three trains collided.” “Will there be any accountability, PM Narendra Modi ? Or will your government shirk responsibility from the biggest train tragedy in living memory?,” Venugopal asked. Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in a tweet wrote, “No accountablity yet. The Modi government cannot run away from taking responsibility for such a tragic accident.” “The 0PM should immediately seek the resignation of the Railway Minister,” he said.