Minister hints at conspiracy,MLA points

The death of 23 children in midday meal tragedy rocked the Bihar Assembly on Monday

The death of 23 children in midday meal tragedy rocked the Bihar Assembly on Monday with HRD Minister P K Shahi hinting at a conspiracy theory and JD(U) MLA Manjit Singh asking if the pesticide found in oil was procured from Gujarat.

Responding to adjournment motion debate,Shahi said that Arjun Yadav,the husband of Gandaman school principal Meena Devi,had brought the pesticide from a West Champaran sugar mill on July 14.

The pesticide was so was poisonous that even one mm was enough to kill 1,000 rats, said Shahi.

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Singh said that investigating agencies should probe whether the tragedy had a Gujarat link and if the pesticide was originally brought from there. He said if timers used in Bodhgaya blasts could be made in Gujarat,this pesticide could have also been brought from there.

Leader of Opposition Nand Kishore Yadav said that the government was trivialising the debate. Instead of answering questions on delay in treatment and wrong line of treatment of children,the government is shying away from real issues, he said.