LoP in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi meets a patient undergoing treatment after alleged consumption of contaminated water, at Bombay Hospital, in Indore. (@INCIndia/X via PTI Photo)
NEW DELHI/INDORE: The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, today met the families of the victims who died due to the consumption of contaminated drinking water in Indore and also those who are undergoing treatment in hospital.Gandhi accused the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh of criminal negligence over the deaths and illnesses caused by contaminated drinking water in the Bhagirathpura area of Indore, saying the government must take responsibility and ensure compensation and assistance to the affected families.After meeting the victims and their families, Gandhi said access to clean drinking water remains a serious issue in the country even today. He alleged that the failure to provide safe drinking water and control pollution reflected the government’s inability to discharge its basic responsibilities.Several people have died and many others have fallen ill after consuming contaminated water in the area, he noted, adding that such incidents were a direct consequence of administrative negligence. “The affected families must be given proper compensation and support,” he demanded. Quoting local residents, the Congress leader said there was still no assured supply of clean drinking water in Bhagirathpura, and that alternative arrangements were temporary and largely symbolic. He warned that once public attention faded, the situation could revert to its earlier state. Residents, he said, were demanding a permanent and systematic solution, which was fully justified.Gandhi said that as Leader of the Opposition, it was his duty to raise the concerns of the affected families and stand with them in their struggle for basic civic amenities.He also questioned the implementation of the Smart City scheme, remarking that this appeared to be the new model of a “Smart City” where citizens did not even have access to clean drinking water. The problem, he said, was not limited to Indore but was prevalent in many cities across the country.Later, in a post on X, Gandhi alleged that the BJP’s “double-engine government” model was marked by poisoned water, air, medicine and land, and that when questions were raised, bulldozers were deployed instead of accountability. He said no one was held responsible for the deaths of the poor, and demanded punishment for those responsible, along with proper treatment and immediate compensation for the victims.
