'Don't get facts from WhatsApp university': BJP MPs rebut charges made in Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge's letter to PM Modi

NEW DELHI: Four BJP MPs from Karnataka, including former chief minister Sadananda Gowda, have written a letter to Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge criticising him for his recent letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi which they said was "high on rhetoric and low on facts".

Detailing mismanagement of the railways, Kharge's letter highlighted 10 points that urged the government to bring out the ‘real reason’ behind the Balasoretriple-train accident that claimed 288 lives.He alleged that the ‘empty safety claims’ of railway ministerAshwini Vaishnaw were now ‘exposed’.
The letter by the MPs stated that "it does not suit a leader of your stature to write letters to the PM based on facts seen on 'WhatsApp University' ... But perhaps as the vice-chancellor of WhatsApp university, you are forced to regurgitate fake news as facts".
Centre misused railway funds: Congress
On Friday, the Congress cited a 2021 CAG report and claimed that the Centre "misused" funds meant for railway safety on crockery, car rentals, furniture, laptops and foot massagers.

"This is how funds specifically meant for railway safety were used. This is the CAG's finding," Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on Twitter.
Quoting the findings of the CAG report, he alleged that the Modi government has been "misusing" Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh (RRSK) funds.
Kharge's allegations and BJP's rebuttal
Kharge, in his letter to the PM, pointed out that the CAG report titled 'Derailment in Indian Railways' highlighted that funding for the RRSK had been reduced by a massive 79%.

It was claimed during the budget presentation that about Rs 20,000 crore would be available annually, but this was not done, Kharge had said and asked why were the required funds not allocated for track renewal work.
However, data in the document showed that from 2017-18 to 2021-22, the railways spent more than Rs 1 lakh crore on RRSK work, said the letter by the BJP MPs.
In February 2022, the government extended the validity of RRSK by another five years, starting 2022-23.
On who should probe the accident
Kharge had also slammed Vaishnaw for involving the CBI, which he claimed lacked the technical expertise in railway safety, signalling, and maintenance practices, to probe a train accident.
"The CBI is meant to investigate crimes, not railway accidents. The CBI, or any other law enforcement agency, cannot fix accountability for technical, institutional and political failures," he had argued.
The BJP MPs said the Commissioner of Railway Safety was carrying out a meticulous inquiry and that the CBI was probing the "larger implications" of the incident.
On vacancies in railways
The Congress leader also pointed out that nearly 3 lakh posts were lying vacant in Indian Railways.

The BJP MPs said that in the last 9 years, the railways had appointed around 6 lakh youth. "The 5,518 freshly appointed assistant loco pilots quash your [Kharge] allegations on neglecting this sector," they added.
On shrinking budget and safety
In the four-page letter, the former railways minister also demanded to know the reason for merging the Budget for Indian Railways with the Union Budget in 2017-18 and asked, “Has this not adversely affected the autonomy and decision-making capacity of Indian Railways?”
Kharge alleged that the railways were being given step-motherly treatment and ‘consistently flawed decision-making has made train travel unsafe.
In response, the BJP MPs stated that the BJP led Centre had inherited a railways "gasping for breath".
"Nine years down the line, our efforts have injected it with newfound strength. Record progress has been made in electrification. Vande Bharat trains have been introduced and completely transformed travel experience. Around 1,275 stations are being redeveloped with modern facilities," read the letter by the BJP MPs.
It further stated that expenditure on railway safety has been over Rs 1.78 lakh crore out of which a major portion goes to track renewal.
"The safety record of the railways shows that accidents have reduced by nearly three times from 0.10 per million train km in 2013-24 to 0.03 per million train km in 2022-23 ... Our government isn't idly hoping for a better railways, we are actively building it," read the letter by the BJP MPs.
(With inputs from agencies)