‘Why was bridge contract given to Oreva?’: Political row erupts over Gujarat bridge collapse

Opposition parties have banded together to slam the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) over the tragic collapse of the Morbi suspension bridge in Gujarat on Sunday, which claimed the lives of at least 134 people, while many others remain missing.

While the Congress party decided to stay away from political snarks when it came to the collapse of the Morbi bridge, the Aam Aadmi Party slammed the BJP-led Gujarat government, demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.

AAP chief and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal questioned why Oreva, a company known for making clocks, was given the contract for the renovation of the suspension bridge, alleging that the company has links with the ruling BJP in Gujarat.

Kejriwal, who is trying to establish ground in Gujarat ahead of the assembly polls, said, “Why was a company that makes clocks given the tender of a bridge? This means he had links with the party (BJP). The FIR in the case mentions neither the company nor its owners.”

The AAP chief also claimed that BJP had received a massive donation from Oreva previously, which is why neither the name of the owner nor the company has been mentioned in the FIR which was filed by the Gujarat police.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said that he didn’t want to politicize the issue as many people lost their lives in the bridge collapse, while other party leaders slammed the BJP government in the state, calling the accident a “man-made tragedy”.

Congress leader Randeep Surjewala said, “This is not a natural accident, it is a man-made tragedy. The BJP government of Gujarat is directly guilty of this heinous crime. PM and CM cannot evade their responsibility by announcing rupee 2 lakh compensation for the lives of Gujarati brothers and sisters.”

AAP and Congress also posted videos and photo of a paint job and clean up going inside the Morbi civil hospital ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Gujarat to take a review of the situation after the bridge collapse.

The Morbi bridge collapse in Gujarat claimed the lives of at least 134 people, who were there to celebrate Chhath Puja on Sunday evening. Oreva, the company responsible for the repairs made to the bridge, is being held under the scanner for the mishap.

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