BJP Government Responsible for 27 Deaths in Indore and Jabalpur: CPI(M)

Bhopal: The Communist Party of India (Marxist) has held the BJP-led Madhya Pradesh government directly responsible for the deaths of 27 people reported in the state’s two major cities, Indore and Jabalpur, saying the incidents expose deep administrative failure and political accountability.

In a statement, CPI(M) State Secretary Jaswinder Singh said the government and its ministers cannot escape responsibility by offering explanations after the fact. In Indore, eight people lost their lives after consuming contaminated drinking water, while in Jabalpur, 19 people died in a tragic incident involving poisonous liquor. He said both incidents have brought to light the grave condition of governance in cities often projected as models.

Referring to Indore, Jaswinder Singh said the deaths caused by polluted water have exposed the actual functioning of the Indore Municipal Corporation, which has been repeatedly showcased as a top-performing civic body. He pointed out that apart from the eight deaths, at least 111 people were hospitalised and 1,146 others were forced to seek medical treatment, clearly indicating that contaminated water had been supplied over an extended period and that the incident was not the result of a minor lapse.

On the Jabalpur tragedy, Jaswinder Singh said the illegal liquor trade could not operate without the protection of the police and political patronage. He alleged that such conditions are not confined to Jabalpur alone and cited Gwalior, where drug trafficking is reportedly flourishing close to a police post near the railway station.

The CPI(M) State Secretary also pointed to the political responsibility of the urban administration, noting that the state’s Urban Administration Minister is from Indore and had earlier served as the mayor of the Indore Municipal Corporation. He said that during his tenure as mayor, the corporation’s widow and old-age pension scam had gained nationwide attention, and that files related to the alleged 20,000-crore-rupee scam are still pending in the Chief Minister’s office.

Jaswinder Singh demanded that the names of politicians and bureaucrats involved in running and protecting the illegal liquor trade in Jabalpur be made public. He also called for a thorough investigation into the supply of contaminated water in Indore and strict punishment for those found responsible.

The CPI(M) has demanded compensation of 50 lakh rupees to the families of each deceased person and a government job for one dependent from every affected family. Singh said two delegations of the party are visiting the affected areas in Indore and Jabalpur on Friday and will meet the families of the victims to assess the situation directly.