Many new facts have come to the fore regarding the Balasore train accident. It is now almost clear that the accident did not happen due to a ‘technical error’. There was some ‘interference’ in the signal system. 288 people lost their lives because someone changed the line the Coromandel Express was to pass through at the last moment. It passed through the loop line instead of the main line and collided with a stationary goods train carrying 6,000 tonnes of iron ore at a speed of 128 kmph. Two coaches of the Bengaluru-Howrah Express derailed and some coaches fell on the other line. The CBI has already registered an FIR and started its investigation, but several political parties have questioned the need for a CBI probe. The Congress alleged that the government was trying to hide the truth by ordering a CBI probe. It said, generally, rail accidents are investigated by the Commissioner of Railway Safety. Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav have questioned the need for a CBI probe. But Janata Dal (S) chief and former PM HD Deve Gowda praised Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav for working hard at the accident site for three days till the restoration work was completed. It is not fair to question the CBI probe, he said. I guess, it doesn’t matter who is doing the investigation. Whoever does the investigation, the truth should come in front of the public. It should be probed as to who misled the loco pilot of Coromandel Express by tampering with the electronic interlocking system which is supposed to be fail safe and error free? Whenever there is a fault in the signaling system, all signals turn red and trains are stopped. Then where did the mistake happen and how did it happen? Who tampered with the electronic interlocking system? Different people have different views. Some said, a manual change in the location box flagged the Coromandel Express. Some said, the interlocking system had been deliberately tampered with as part of a conspiracy. Since everyone has their own theory and conclusion, it has now become a big challenge for the CBI to find out how the foolproof system gave a false signal. Was it a technical fault or negligence? Or was the interlocking changed under some conspiracy? Until all these questions are answered, it would be better, and I think, Deve Gowda is right, that politicians should refrain from indulging in games.
Bridge Collapsed: Who’s Responsible?
The report of the expert committee of IIT Roorkee, which was waiting for 14 months, was submitted within 36 hours on Sunday after the under-construction bridge in Bihar’s Bhagalpur collapsed. The Bihar government has suspended an executive engineer, issued a show-cause notice to the MD and SP Singla Construction Company of Bihar Pul Nirman Nigam Limited and directed them to clear the debris from the Ganga river within 15 days. Additional Chief Secretary said, the company can be blacklisted. When the Rs 1700 crore bridge collapses like a house of cards, questions will arise and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will have to answer. He has already said that he knew the build had serious flaws. The question arises why no action was taken? Tejashwi Yadav says, the government was waiting for the report of IIT experts. Then the question is, if the report was awaited then why was permission given to resume work on the bridge? The biggest question is, how was the report of the IIT experts, which was awaited for 14 months, handed over in a day? Till these questions are not answered, the intentions of Nitish Kumar’s government will remain in doubt. Both Nitish and Tejashwi Yadav will have to suffer political losses. Meanwhile, questions have been raised on the involvement of the same SP Singla construction company in 34 projects in Maharashtra. When Uddhav Thackeray was chief minister, the company was awarded the contract for construction of the Rs 6,000-crore Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR) project by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation in December, 2021, which includes 12 km of road and a flyover. Now the NCP, Congress and BJP have demanded an inquiry into the quality of the project and the entire tender process. Congress leader Ravi Raja has demanded that the contract be canceled and the company be blacklisted. Shiv Sena (UT) leader Arvind Sawant replied that Eknath Shinde was the urban development minister when the Uddhav Thackeray government had the contract for that company, and the same portfolio is still with Shinde today. He said that questions should be asked to the present Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
Wrestlers’ problem: now is the time for a solution
Champion wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik on Wednesday met Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur and demanded that wrestling federation chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh should be arrested. The Sports Minister has invited wrestlers for fresh talks related to allegations of sexual harassment. Although the meeting remained inconclusive, there will be more rounds of talks. I think our champion wrestlers have shown a lot of restraint and the government has taken the initiative to talk to them. We hope that some action will be taken at the earliest. First of all, wrestlers should be convinced that Delhi Police is not trying to save MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. If the wrestlers are still adamant in saying that they do not trust the police, then the investigation should be handed over to some other agency. Second, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh should be immediately removed from the post of President of Wrestling Federation of India and it should be ensured that whenever WFI elections are held, no relative or son or nominee of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh is made the President. Third, a woman administrator should be given the responsibility of handling the day-to-day affairs of women wrestlers. I think some steps have been started in this direction. The only issue now is the demand of the wrestlers for the arrest of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. I think if the police find the MP guilty of sexual harassment then action should be taken against him. If necessary, he should be interrogated by taking him into custody. If efforts are made from both the sides to solve the problem then a way can be found.
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