New Delhi: The Congress on Wednesday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "misleading" the nation on the Kanpur train tragedy by calling it an "act of terror" and demanded that he apologise.
Asking the Prime Minister and BJP leaders to stop lying to the people, Congress leader Manpreet Badal demanded the Election Commission take note of the Prime Minister's remarks on the train tragedy as it amounted to an electoral offence.
"Shockingly, it has exposed a dangerous game being played by Prime Minister Modi and BJP in UP elections. Can the Prime Minister of the country mischievously deceive the nation on such a sensitive issue and weave stories in a public speech?
"It is an Election Offence under Section 123 (4) of Representation of People Act, 1951. If Prime Minister evokes 'false' stories on terrorism based on a fear psychosis and misrepresentation aimed at garnering votes, it clearly erodes the credibility and trust of Modiji's words," he said.
The Congress leader asked, "PM Modi said this accident was a conspiracy against India. If this true, who should be held accountable for this tragedy?"
Badal, accompanied by another Congress leader Jaiveer Shergill said at a press conference that to "maliciously mislead" and "consciously dupe" the countrymen has become a hallmark of Modi's electoral rhetoric and "jumlas".
"Leaders do not lie to the nation and this does not behove the status of Prime Minister. Dear PM and BJP, If you want to become a real leader, please don't lie to the nation.
If the BJP wants to govern and PM wants to lead the nation, then they should stop lying to the people," he said.
Last week at an election rally in UP, Modi alluded to the Kanpur train accident of November 20, 2016 in which 154 people were killed and described it as an "act of terror".
"Yesterday, DG Railways told the Railway Minister and authorities via video conferencing that 'there was no sabotage'. The Congress party asks if the Prime Minister is speaking the truth or the Railways Director General.
"The Prime Minister is making such remarks to garner votes and for cheap publicity. What led the PM to claim that this accident was a terrorist act? The party would like that the Prime Minister must apologise to the nation for what he said out of enthusiasm," Badal said.
He said after 26/11, then Home Minister had handed over his resignation the next day and after a railway tragedy in the 1960s Lal Bahadur Shastri had resigned.
"But, there is no accountability for this accident. The DG Railways had ruled out any terrorist activity as a cause for this accident. Contradiction of the PM by DG Railways on the Kanpur Train Accident erodes his credibility," he said.
Taking on the Prime Minister over recent revelations that BJP and RSS men were allegedly involved in an espionage racket unearthed in Madhya Pradesh, Badal asked why Modi is maintaining a stoic silence on the issue.
He alleged BJP office bearers in Madhya Pradesh have been arrested for running a spy racket and allegedly being hand in glove with Pakistan's ISI to spy on the Indian Army.
On whether the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister should be questioned on the spy racket, Badal said "Why should the Chief Minister be beyond the ambit of law? We have a right to ask this question".
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