'Leadership crisis, incompetence': Mallikarjun Kharge takes jibe at BJP; blames it for Gujarat bridge tragedy
NEW DELHI: Congress President
Mallikarjun Kharge
on Thursday took a sharp dig at the BJP-led central government, claiming that recent national tragedies are a result of "leadership crisis," "rampant corruption," and "incompetence.
"
Referring to incidents like the Gujarat bridge collapse and the Ahmedabad plane crash, Kharge accused the government of crossing all 'limits of indifference' and failing in its governance responsibilities.
The Gambhira bridge collapse on Wednesday has so far claimed 15 lives, with rescue operations underway. Officials confirmed that three more bodies were recovered on Thursday, and four people remain missing, as reported by ANI.
Taking to X, Kharge expressed condolences to the families of the victims. He said that accidents such as train derailments, newly inaugurated bridges cracking, and deadly crashes have become frequent. Referring to the recent Ahmedabad plane crash that killed over 240 people, Kharge said the country had not yet recovered from that tragedy when another struck.
"Accidents have become a common occurrence in the country.
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Sometimes a train accident, sometimes a bridge developing cracks right after its inauguration. The country hasn't even recovered from the plane crash when news of a bridge collapse in Gujarat came yesterday. 12 innocent lives were lost," he wrote.
He cited reports suggesting that the bridge was declared 'dangerous' three years ago due to 'vibrations,' yet no action was taken. Since 2021, this is the 7th incident of a bridge collapse in Gujarat," he added.
Kharge further claimed that said the
BJP
government is only focused on 'speeches and advertising,' and added, 'this is the result of a Leadership Crisis, rampant corruption, lack of capacity to run the government, and Incompetence."
The Gambhira bridge connected Vadodara and Anand and collapsed into the Mahisagar river, sending vehicles, including two trucks, two pickup vans, and a rickshaw, into the water. Vadodara collector Anil Dhameliya said that search and rescue teams, including the
NDRF
and SDRF, were working up to 4 km downstream despite rising river levels and rain.
He added that two vehicles are stuck in the sludge at the site and officials were trying to identify them. One empty tanker truck is hanging from the broken edge of the bridge, and efforts are underway to stabilise it.
"The death toll stands at 15 now with recovery of 3 more bodies today. Four people remain missing. National disaster response force (NDRF) and state disaster response force (SDRF) are conducting search and rescue operations even till 4 km downstream," said Dhameliya as quoted by ANI.
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