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Tribune News Service
Amritsar, October 20
The kin of victims blocked the railway tracks at the mishap site for hours on Saturday morning and shouted anti-government slogans. They alleged misreporting of the toll by the authorities and blamed them for the incident.
The protesters turned aggressive and attacked the police personnel deployed at the venue with stones. “We have lost our loved ones. The announcement of compensation cannot replace them. The authorities and local leaders were also present at the venue for celebrations. Now they say that there was no permission for the event,” said Sarwan, a daily wager, whose elder brother Mahesh died in the tragedy.
Surinder Sharma, a local activist, claimed: “Over 150 people have been killed. The authorities are trying to hide facts and downplay the impact of the tragedy.”
Later, the police resorted to lathicharge to disperse the crowd. The protesters also showed resentment against former MLA Navjot Kaur Sidhu, blaming her for the mishap.
“She arrived late that led to a delay in the commencement of the function, which was scheduled for 6 pm. Had everything gone as planned, the crowd would have dispersed by the time the train crossed,” said Santosh, another eyewitness.
Meanwhile, Gurdaspur ADC Subhash Chandar, who was among the team of officials commissioned to provide assistance to the affected families, said every possible step was being taken to ensure that the victims get aid. “We have been visiting the affected families to gather information about missing persons so that unclaimed bodies can be identified. Three to four officials are working round-the-clock and taking care of their needs,” he said.
Seven children among deceased
As per information released by the district administration, the dead included five children aged two years and one each aged three and five years. There were 12 casualties in the age group of 10 to 20. The dead also included at least seven females.
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