BJP MPs’ response to Kharge train crash letter shows their ‘intolerance to criticism’: Chidambaram

Four BJP MPs — all from Karnataka, and including former railways minister D V Sadananda Gowda — had countered this letter, saying: “For more than 60 years, Railways suffered from inadequate investments. The consolidation of the railway budget put the Railways at the forefront of the Government’s fiscal policy,” the letter said. They accused Kharge of writing a letter that was “high on rhetoric and low on facts”.

Chidambaram said the BJP MPs’ counter letter was “shallow on facts and hollow on arguments”. According to Chidambaram, their response was another example of the “absolute intolerance of the BJP to any criticism.”

“In a functioning democracy, the people expect the Hon’ble Prime Minister to reply to the letter. But our democracy is such that the Hon’ble Prime Minister will not deem it worth a reply,” the former Union finance minister said.

“Two CAG reports submitted in December 2022 completely vindicate Shri Kharge’s reasoned criticism,” he said.

“The letter dated 09-02-2023 of the Principal Chief Operations Manager of the S W Railway was a forewarning that a tragedy such as Balasore was likely to happen. I have no doubt that the letter lay unattended in some file of the S W Railway and was gathering dust. Will the Hon’ble BJP MPs tell us what action was taken on the letter?” Chidambaram said.

Kharge, in his letter, had said that the CBI is meant to investigate crimes, not railway accidents, and cannot fix accountability for technical, institutional, and political failures.

The Congress chief had also said “all the empty safety claims” of Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw have now been “exposed” and the government must bring to light the real reasons that caused this grave accident, which he described as one of the worst in Indian history.

In his four-page letter to Modi, the Congress chief had alleged that instead of focusing on strengthening the railways at the basic level, only “superficial touch up” is being done to stay in news.

The MPs, also including PC Mohan, S Muniswamy and Tejasvi Surya, said that they expected Kharge, a former railways minister, to discern the situation understanding, but his communication to the PM suggested otherwise.

“There was no collision in Mysore as stated in your letter. It doesn’t suit a leader of your stature to be writing letters to the PM based on facts got from ‘Whatsapp University’. But perhaps as the Vice-Chancellor of Whatsapp University, you are forced to regurgitate fake news as facts,” their letter stated.

“In the 10-year period from 2004-2014, the total Gross Budgetary Support for Railways was Rs 1.64 Lakh crore. The Gross Budgetary Support for railways in the year 2023-24 alone is Rs. 2.4 lakh crore. In the 10 years since 2014, the total GBS has been Rs 8.26 lakh crore,” it said. “Our commitment to social service remains unshaken, as the Indian Railways continues to bear 53% of the passenger service costs,” it added.