Congress holds Modi govt responsible for train mishap

New Delhi: The Congress Party on Sunday held Suresh Prabhu-led Ministry of Railways responsible for the derailment of Patna-Indore Express and said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who talks of bullet trains, has totally ignored the safety of Indian railways.

Demanding an explanation from the ruling dispensation, Congress leader Madhu Yashki Goud urged the government to announce adequate compensation to the grieved.

"It is a very tragic incident and one of the biggest accidents in the history of railways. The Congress Party expresses its deepest condolences to the grieved family members and also at the same time demands from the government compensation to the kin of the deceased and injured," said Goud.

"Our party also demands an explanation from the government. The Prime Minister is busy travelling to Japan and talking about bullet train but in his tenure ignored the safety of the Railways. It is utter failure of the Railways Minister," he added.

Echoing similar sentiments, another Congress leader Ahmed Patel held the Centre's approach towards the Indian Railways responsible for the accident.

"There are over 1.22 lakh vacant position in the railways of which 75 percent pertain to safety. Important that government fills them up ASAP," Patel said.

With massive rescue operations in full swing to pull out bodies from the wreckage of the derailed Indore-Patna Express, the death toll in the tragic accident has mounted to a staggering 97.

At least 226 people have been injured and several bodies are still trapped under the wreckage of the mangled coaches after the train derailed at the Hanshi-Kanpur intersection in Uttar Pradesh at 3.20 a.m.

One army column, a team of doctors and paramedics have been deployed at the spot to help in the rescue operation.

Two National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams from Varanasi and one NDRF team from Lucknow have been sent to the accident spot to assist in the rescue operation.

Minister of State for Railways Manoj Sinha has ordered a high-level probe into the incident.

Earlier on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his condolences to the bereaved kin of the victims.