Trinamool Congress criticizes Modi over Gujarat bridge collapse

KOLKATA, (PTI): Criticising the BJP government in Gujarat for the collapse of the Morbi bridge, TMC on Tuesday wondered whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi will condemn that state as he did during a similar incident in Bengal in 2016.

The TMC was evidently referring to the collapse of a portion of the under construction Vivekananda Road flyover in central Kolkata during the assembly poll in Bengal in March 2016. It had led to the death of 27 people and left many others injured.

”When a bridge had collapsed in Kolkata during the 2016 assembly polls, the prime minister while campaigning for his party had blamed corruption as the main reason for it. Now let him say the same thing about the incident in Gujarat,” TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh said.

TMC also shared a video clip of Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticising the TMC government for the 2016 bridge collapse in the state.

PTI could not, however, independently verify the authenticity of the video clip.

TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev said the bridge collapse at Morbi has exposed BJP’s much-hyped ‘Gujarat Model’.

”In 2016 PM Narendra Modi came to West Bengal and criticised the state government over the bridge collapse. The PM has a habit of politicising every issue if it transpires in an opposition-ruled state. But a tragic incident has taken place in Gujarat, a state ruled by BJP. So what will he say now? The incident has exposed the Gujarat model,” she said.

The BJP on its part slammed the TMC for trying to play politics over the tragic incident at Morbi. ”It is shameful that TMC is trying to politicise the incident in Gujarat. TMC and its leaders should be the last to talk about corruption. They should stop this vulture politics. The two incidents (at Morbi and Kolkata) have no similarities,” state BJP spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said.

As poll campaign was on in Bengal during the Vivekananda Road bridge collapse, several opposition parties including the BJP, had panned the TMC government in the state for it. The TMC had dubbed the criticisms as ”baseless”.

A total 135 people were killed in the collapse of the pedestrian suspension bridge on Sunday and the Gujarat police has arrested nine people. A case was lodged against firms tasked with the maintenance and operation of the British-era structure on Monday.

Video footage of the moments before the collapse on Sunday evening showed the cables of the bridge snapping in a few seconds taking down scores of visitors who were walking on the swaying British-era structure, which had reopened five days ago after extensive repair but sans a fitness certificate. (PTI)