BJP Telangana head blames civic apathy for ‘Janmashtami’ tragedy

Telangana BJP president N. Ramchander Rao has blamed the State government and its civic agencies for their “indifferent and callous” attitude, which he said led to the electrocution deaths of devotees during a ‘Janmashtami’ procession in Ramanthapur on Sunday.

Speaking to the media after meeting the families of the deceased, Mr. Rao said the BJP had repeatedly cautioned civic bodies such as the CPDCL, GHMC, and HMWSSB to take preventive measures ahead of the monsoon. These included ensuring there were no hanging power cables, clearing blocked drains, and securing manhole covers.

However, he alleged that the agencies had failed to act on these warnings. He demanded an increased ex-gratia of up to ₹50 lakh for the families of the victims and insisted that the incident should not be dismissed as a mere accident. Mr. Rao urged the civic authorities to undertake urgent repairs of roads and drains and to remove hanging wires on a war footing to prevent further tragedies.