'No criminal, just insensitivity': BJP leader Uma Bharti highlights railway infrastructure gaps

Veteran BJP leader Uma Bharti on Sunday (April 12) wrote to the Railway Minister detailing a near-miss at Jhansi Railway Station, where she nearly missed her train due to a series of infrastructure and scheduling issues. She called for urgent reforms to safeguard passengers, especially persons with disabilities, the elderly and common travellers.

In a detailed, point-by-point post on X, Bharti said that despite reaching the station well in advance, a chain of avoidable delays led to her boarding the Punjab Mail after it had already begun moving. “I don't know who pulled the chain, and I was seated in the train,” she wrote.

The former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, who has a physical disability that limits her mobility, said she had reached Jhansi Railway Station well before the train’s scheduled arrival. Officials in the Jhansi Railway Division were aware of her condition and had arranged a battery-operated cart for movement across platforms. “Even pressing the accelerator could cause me discomfort,” she explained.

Also Read: US to ‘shortly’ begin naval blockade of Strait of Hormuz, announces Trump

However, a series of unexpected obstacles consumed crucial minutes. While being taken from Platform 1 to Platform 4, a passing train on a crossing track forced a halt. Shortly after, a handcart was found stuck on the track. “My security personnel assisted in removing it,” she wrote. By the time she reached Platform 4, the Punjab Mail had already started moving.

Bharti was careful not to assign individual blame; rather, she underlined systemic lapses. “I do not consider it the fault of the Jhansi Railway officers at all, nor my own; this entire arrangement was operated by the officials running the rails inside the rails,” she wrote, pointing to broader systemic gaps.

“Everything was as per schedule; there was no mistake by anyone; yet, three to four minutes were wasted,” she noted, listing the compounding factors, including early train movement, the crossing train and the track obstruction. She also called for a review of CCTV footage at Jhansi Railway Station to verify the sequence of events.

The former Union Minister said this was not the first such instance, recalling that she had earlier flagged “insensitivity towards passengers” at Mathura Railway Station. She added that she plans to meet the Railway Minister to discuss both incidents together.

Her sharpest remarks were directed at systemic shortcomings affecting vulnerable passengers. “Leave me aside, but common people, persons with disabilities, the elderly, men and women carrying a lot of luggage, and women with children in their laps become victims of this disarray,” she wrote.

“We should modernise the railways but also keep the old systems vigilant. Please pay attention to these disorders,” she urged.