Congress takes 'Fail Minister' dig at Vaishnaw

The Congress on Tuesday took a swipe at Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw after the train derailment in Jharkhand, saying since June the “Fail Minister” has “overseen three accidents” that have cumulatively cost 17 lives but there is “no accountability” in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “new India”.

Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh, hitting out at Vaishnaw, said in a post on X, “Yet another railway accident. But the PR machine of the Fail Minister continues. In June and July 2024 alone, the Fail Minister has overseen three accidents that have cumulatively cost 17 Indians their lives and left 100s injured.”

Congress’s media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said, “Train Accidents: A Weekly Reality in Modi’s New India. July 18: Train accident in Gonda, UP: Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express: 4 killed, 31 injured. July 19: Goods train derailed in Valsad, Gujarat. July 20: 12 wagons of a freight train derailed in Amroha, UP. July 21: 3 wagons of a goods train derailed in Alwar, Rajasthan. July 21: Goods train derailed in Ranaghat, West Bengal. July 26: Goods train derailed at Bhubaneswar Railway Station, Orissa. July 29: Bihar Sampark Kranti Express detached from other coaches in Samastipur, Bihar. July 30: Several coaches of the Howrah-CSMT Express train derailed in Chakradharpur, Jharkhand: 2 killed, 20 injured.”

In the usual aftermath, Vaishnaw would visit the site with his PR team by evening and will upload a reel by tomorrow, Khera said, taking a dig at the railway minister.

“In Modi’s new India, there is no accountability, no resignations, only grandiose talks about irrelevant rail projects that no one uses,” he said.