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Journalism of Courage
Railway Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav had come under fire for announcing a fresh probe into the Sabarmati train carnage, but at ground zero it’s the railway officials who are feeling the heat. Ever since the announcement, the station is agog with rumours about Yadav’s ‘‘sudden but expected visit’’. There is no official word yet, but everyone at the station thinks he may arrive anytime. They are busy guessing and revising dates, according to the ‘‘information’’ they have.
‘‘There is a rumour that the first thing he will do on his arrival is visit the S-6 coach and inspect the damage himself,’’ said Prakash Dixit, a member of the newly appointed station consultative committee.
Station Superintendent R.M. Bagul said there was no intimation of the minister’s visit. But he admitted that it was rumoured Yadav would visit the station on July 23, which was later postponed by a day.
The guessing game is still on and the most likely dates are after July 23 when the Lok Sabha will take a break. Chhotaudepur MP and Minister of State for Railways Naranbhai Rathwa, however, said Yadav was not likely to visit Godhra. Members of the probe committee, as and when it is constituted, will visit Godhra and submit the report to the minister, he added. But at Godhra station, no one seems to agree with him.
What has set the cat among the pigeons is Yadav’s statement in Parliament that some railway officials have misled the probe and they will be taken to task. The statement has also sent panic waves among officials who were posted at Godhra station when the incident took place.
One of the reasons behind the rumour was the keen interest that Yadav took when a delegation from Godhra called on him at Delhi on June 20. The delegation had alleged that the police probe in the case was biased. On their return, those who were part of the delegation suggested that the minister would like to inspect the S-6 coach.
