j-k-deputy-cm-blames-lg-for-vaishno-devi-tragedy

Jammu and Kashmir’s Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary on Friday strongly criticised Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, holding him responsible for the Vaishno Devi tragedy in which about 34 pilgrims lost their lives in a landslide.

 

"(At Vaishno Devi) the shrine board is present, which monitors everything. Then why was the yatra not stopped in bad weather? And even if people were returning, why were they not stopped at the Durbar (the location of the shrine)? Why didn’t the LG direct the CEO to stop the yatra?" Choudhary told mediapersons while visiting flood-hit areas in Jammu.

 

The Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board rejected the allegations, saying the yatra had been suspended on August 26 at noon, after a specific weather advisory was issued, well before the cloudburst that triggered the landslide. 

 

“Yatra on this track was suspended by 12 noon on August 26 upon issuance of the specific weather advisory,” the Board said in a statement on Thursday night. The board, however, did not release details about the number of deaths.

 

The disaster struck on Tuesday when a cloudburst caused a landslide along the Adhkuwari route in the Trikuta hills, killing 34 pilgrims and injuring 20 others.

Choudhary pointed to the LG-led shrine board’s role and said, As this board is under him, then why was the yatra not stopped? This is a very big question, and he must answer it.” He also accused the LG administration of failing to learn from past tragedies.

 

The Deputy CM called for “governance by a single elected government” in Jammu and Kashmir. He said, “Today in Jammu and Kashmir, two governments are running. One is the LG’s government, and the other is Omar Abdullah’s government. Abdullah’s government has been chosen and sent by the people, and it is fulfilling its duty.”

 

He further alleged that instead of being in Jammu during this tragedy, Sinha was busy visiting poll-bound Bihar.

 

Meanwhile, the LG has set up a three-member inquiry committee, led by the additional chief secretary, to investigate the incident. The panel has been asked to submit its report within two weeks.