Coronavirus outbreak: State and Centre blamed over Bandra incident

Even as two prominent arrests were made in Tuesdays mass gathering at Bandra station the political blamegame began with allegations and counterallegationsThe Shiv Senaled state is being blamed for disregarding the homesick migrants need for food and shelter in the pandemic while the Centre has been accused of mismanaging the national lockdown making things difficult for state governmentsA mainstream Marathi news channel ABP Majhas Osmanabadbased bureau chief Rahul Kulkarni was arrested for filing a news report that said trains would operate in the extended lockdown periodKulkarni however said that his news report was based on a letter written on April 13 2020 by Chief Commercial Manager Passenger Division of South Central Railway Securaderabad to Senior Divisional Commercial ManagersHow many of my trolls have watched the news on April 14 Did I say when the trains would start running Please read the railways letter tweeted Kulkarni When contacted ABP Majha editor Rajeev Khandekar said the channel would issue a statementSome people branded Vinay Dubey chief of NGO Uttar Bharatiya Mahapanchayat accused of threatening a protest against the delay in longdistance train services as a leader of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena MNSThe MNS denied the person was associated with it but said Dubey had shared the dais with MNS chief Raj Thackeray during his interaction with north Indian people CM Uddhav Thackeray in his Tuesday nights address said Raj is also with me in fighting the coronavirus pandemic and not politicising it The CM also assured migrants food and safetyState to be blamed BJPOpposition leader Devendra Fadnavis said the incident was shocking We have been demanding ration and food to ration card holders and also to people who do not have ration cards PM Narendra Modi has been appealing for social distancing and if the trains start the basic purpose of social distance will be defeated he saidAt least now the state government must learn a lesson and ensure that such dangerous incidents do not take place in the future he saidUnderstand that the war against Coronavirus is not a political war We have to be united in fighting it The state government should be finding solutions ratherthan hunting for copouts he addedCongress alleges conspiracyCongress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said there have been 11 sources that spread the rumour of trains resuming A proper probe will establish a link between them he saidRailway ministry has caused chaos Rumours are spread to give a shape to the Bandra incident The BJP has been making accusations and statements to create public discontent by asking the CM Thackeray to resign Sawant told middayHe said the railway minister was completely responsible for the chaos Extreme mismanagement and careless approach has been the epitome of the Modi government How could they book tickets in advance Why didnt they inform us about the cancellation of trains earlier Sawant also wondered how a news channel had found communication between railway officialsThe issue also saw discord between Congress and Shiv Sena when Congresss Bandra East MLA Zeeshan Siddique told a news channel that the government hadnt provided any ration to people and said he was personally providing essentials to people in Bandra East and WestHe later corrected the goofup by responding to the channels social media post that the CM had been doing a great job and demanded that the Centre must release funds to the state A senior police officer who was part of the team that handled the situation denied any conspiracy but said that people had gathered at Bandra only to create pressure on the authoritiesSome people are making a mountain out of a molehill We handled the situation well and people responded well But we had to lathicharge when some unruly people stayed back prevented the needy from receiving ration and scuffled with the police force We assured them shelter with a request that they cannot be allowed to go home for their own safety said the officer11No of people Cong has accused of spreading rumoursCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and a complete guide from food to things to do and events across Mumbai Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest news