The government on Sunday said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s tweet claiming privatisation of trains, railway property, stations and hospitals of Indian Railways are “completely bogus and factless.”
In a tweet, the fact-checking unit of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) referred to Gandhi’s post on the micro-blogging site. It said: “A tweet falsely claims that 151 trains, railway property, stations and hospitals of Indian Railways have been privatized.”
एक ट्वीट में फर्जी दावा किया जा रहा है कि भारतीय रेलवे की 151 ट्रेनों, रेलवे संपत्ति, स्टेशनों और अस्पतालों का निजीकरण कर दिया गया है#PIBFactCheck
ये दावे पूर्णतः फर्जी एवं तथ्यहीन हैं
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) November 13, 2022
It further said these claims are “completely bogus and factless” and clarified that the Railway Ministry is not privatising any of its assets.
Rahul Gandhi shared a video from the ongoing Bharat Jodo Yatra campaign on Saturday and wrote “Indian Railways connects the country” and listed its services including “providing services to 2.5 crore passengers daily and employment to 12 lakh people.” Addressing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said “railway is the property of the country. Do not privatise it. Strengthen it. Don’t sell it.”
12 लाख लोगों को रोज़गार, 2.5 करोड़ देशवासियों की रोज़ सेवा – देश को जोड़ती है भारतीय रेल।
प्रधानमंत्री जी, रेलवे देश की सम्पत्ति है, इसे निजीकरण नहीं, सशक्तिकरण की ज़रूरत है। बेचो मत! pic.twitter.com/Z6m5S0vQio
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) November 12, 2022
In the video, Gandhi is seen in Telangana and interacting with members of railways union who allegedly came to meet Rahul Gandhi to submit a memorandum against ‘railway privatisation’. In conversation with South Central Railway Employees Sangh Assistant General Secretary, Bharani Bhanu Prasad, Gandhi asks “which part of Indian Railways are they (government) privatising.” Prasad responds by stating: “Railway stations, railway workshops, railway medical hospitals, and railway establishments are going to be privatised.”
The central government has reiterated that it had no plans to privatise the national transporter. “The opposition parties are repeatedly alleging a move to privatise the railways. I wish to clearly state that the railways is a big complex organisation…there’s no policy to privatise the railways. No such plans, whatsoever,” Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had said in April.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi had already said the Central government has no intention to privatise the railways,” he had said.
With inputs from News18
The post Govt dismisses Rahul’s claim about privatisation of Railways first appeared on IPA Newspack.
